


The Supernatural Diaries

by 1stBorn04



Series: The Supernatural Diaries [1]
Category: Supernatural, The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: All The Ships, BAMFs, Bisexual Male Character(s), Biting, Blood Sharing, Blood and Gore, Blood and Violence, Caroline Forbes & Stefan Salvatore Friendship, Crossover, Crossover Pairings, Crossovers & Fandom Fusions, Demons show up in Mystic Falls what could possibly go wrong, Drunk Sex, Dubious Consent, Elena Gilbert & Damon Salvatore Friendship, Everyone Has Issues, Everyone deserves better, F/M, Gen, Giuseppe Salvatore is His Own Warning, Lexi and Dean get along really well, Loss of Parent(s), Love Bites, M/M, Masturbation in Shower, Minor Elena Gilbert/Stefan Salvatore, Multi, Oral Sex, Other Ships Not Mentioned in Tags, POV Alternating, POV Multiple, Past Relationship(s), Reincarnation, Sam is a Saint, Secret Relationship, Shower Sex, Underage - Freeform, Vampire Bites, there's a lot of shit going down in the year 1864
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:01:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 20
Words: 22,797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27554275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/1stBorn04/pseuds/1stBorn04
Summary: Sam and Dean are teenagers attending school at Mystic Falls High. Dean is a Hunter but is best friends with Stefan Salvatore. Elena just lost her parents and is head over heels for Dean. Caroline just wants a guy to pay attention to her. Damon Salvatore returns to Mystic Falls stirring up trouble. Bonnie uncovers the secrets of her ancestry as does Dean with his. The past threatens to come back to haunt them as they all prepare for the Re-Awakening. Matt Donovan is still Matt Donovan. Vicki is still irrelevant. Tyler is still Tyler. And some secrets are better left buried underground. The Winchesters' past comes a-knockin'.
Relationships: Alaric Saltzman & Damon Salvatore, Bonnie Bennett & Caroline Forbes & Elena Gilbert, Damon Salvatore & Dean Winchester, Damon Salvatore & Stefan Salvatore, Damon Salvatore/Original Male Character(s), Elena Gilbert & Damon Salvatore, Elena Gilbert & Sam Winchester, Elena Gilbert/Dean Winchester, Elena Gilbert/Stefan Salvatore, Katherine Pierce/Damon Salvatore/Stefan Salvatore, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Sam Winchester & Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester & Jeremy Gilbert, Stefan Salvatore & Dean Winchester, Stefan Salvatore & Sam Winchester
Series: The Supernatural Diaries [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2014075
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Annehiggins](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Annehiggins/gifts).

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prologue. Simple.

On November 2nd, 1994, Sam and Dean's lives changed forever and the two brothers were thrust into the world of the supernatural. They were constantly on the road with their dad, saving people and hunting things: the family business. They were three men on a mission.

A mission to find the thing that killed Mary Winchester; Sam and Dean's mother.

However, they never were able to find the damn thing.

On March 14th, 2006, Sam and Dean's lives changed again. At 10:24 A.M., John Winchester died of a heart attack. At least that's what the doctors' say. Neither of the brothers truly believed that to be the case and they kept waiting for the other shoe to drop.

However, when it didn't, Dean made a vow to get Sam out of the hunting game and give him the most normal life he could. But that didn't mean Dean would give up on his father's mission. Oh, no, he would keep hunting the thing that murdered his mom, but Sam would just have to be as far away from him as possible.

After their dad died, the boys moved in with their Uncle Bobby. Unfortunately, because of some personal issues that Dean had to face and the hunters that constantly rolled through town, bringing their monster crap with them, Sam and Dean ended up leaving Sioux Falls six months later to move in with an old friend of Bobby's named Sheila Bennett, who lived in Mystic Falls, Virginia.

Now, three years have passed and Dean is a senior in high school, while Sam is just starting as a freshman. They made a lot of new friends that they actually get to keep. Dean is on the football team and may or may not be crushing on someone. Everything was happy and peaceful in Mystic Falls.

Until it wasn't.

Last school year, Dean's friend, Elena Gilbert, lost her parents in a car accident when their car went over Wickery Bridge. Four months have passed since then, and she is barely hanging on by a thread. A new student is attending high school with a shady past. And multiple people have died due to mysterious "animal attacks."

And the kicker is...

Almost all of the victims' bodies have been completely drained of blood.

Almost.


	2. Unknown I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A mysterious newcomer arrives in Mystic Falls.

I walked down the empty road silently as I approached the border of the town. It's been a long time since I've been back home. Well, "home" is a strong word for me to use. This place hasn't really been a true home to me in a _long_ time. Not since it happened. Not since... Nevermind.

It is peculiar though. Maybe there's something about my past that is forever rooted in this place that keeps pulling me back. Maybe it's because I'm a glutton for punishment and like to be reminded of all the horrible things that happened here. Or maybe it's because of _her_. After all, she is the reason why, in a way, my life has been so complicated.

Whatever the case might be, I think it all stems from one emotion. Loneliness. The need to reconnect with someone, _anyone_ , just to remember what it feels like to be alive. Just so I can remember that I _can_ feel at all.

However, that's easier said than done. Especially with the wild and dangerous, and chaotic life I lead. Hopefully, this time I come home, it'll be different from all the other times I tried to be normal and _Trouble_ seemed to follow me. Hopefully, this time, I can find some semblance of happiness; peace.

And as I stepped over the town line, that's what I kept telling myself. Peace.

For over a century, I've lived in secret; hiding in the shadows, alone in the world. Until now.

I am a vampire.

And this is my story.


	3. Dean I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The new school year has started and a lot of high school drama ensues. All of this is from Dean's perspective.

<https://youtu.be/awoFZaSuko4>

_Hey, Dad, it's me again._

_I don't know if you're able to read this wherever you are, but if so, then I thought you might want to know that it's Sammy's first day of high school today. Other than that I don't really have any exciting news. My best friend Elena is kind of going through a rough time right now. She just lost both her parents and I've kinda been the only friend who can sympathize with her on that front._

_Everyone's probably going to ask her if she's okay, and she's most likely going to say, "Yes, I'm fine. Thank you." However, deep down, I think the others and I know differently. I was never really good at feelings and I know she's going to try to put on a brave face. I know she's not going to want to talk about it, and I get that. I just hope she remembers that I or any of her friends are here if she needs it._

_Aside from that drama, I honestly hope the rest of the school year ends up being less crappy than it was last year. It's been three years since Sam and I quit hunting and moved to Mystic Falls. Well, three years for Sam at least. But what he doesn't know is that I've been trying to uncover new leads on the thing that killed mom._

_I know that I promised Sam I'd stop hunting, but I can't. It's like every time I try to distance myself from it and have a normal life, the urge to finish what you started and pick up where you left off hits me twice as hard. As crazy as it sounds, I feel like being a Hunter is just something I was meant to be; it feels like it's always been part of me._

"DEAN!" Sam's voice called out from the other side of my door. I immediately bolted up from where I sat on my bed and closed up Dad's journal and hid it underneath my pillow just as my little brother burst through the door. 

"What's up, rugrat?" I asked. 

"Aunt Sheila said to come down and get breakfast before we leave for school," Sam replied. I nodded in understanding. "Okay, I'm comin'," I said. Then, he darted back out into the hallway as quickly as he came in. As I stood up to my full height, I picked up my phone and school bag and followed Sam down to the kitchen.

Well, here's to a normal first day back at school.

Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Each episode will be told from the point of views of the focal characters of that episode. So for the first six or so episodes expect a lot of POV chapters from Elena, Stefan, Dean, Sam, and Damon. As the story goes on I will have more character chapters show up and I'll set up a poll in the comment section to let you guys vote on who's point of view you want to read next.


	4. Elena I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elena reflects on past events and comes clean about her newfound emotions.

_Dear Diary,_

_Today will be different. It has to be. I will smile, and it will be believable. I'll smile, and say, "I'm fine, thank you. Yes, I feel much better." There's only one person who might see through the mask I wear, but I know he won't force me to talk about it. That's one of the reasons why I love him._

_I will no longer be the sad little girl who lost her parents. I will start fresh, be someone new. It's the only way I'll make it through._

As I finished off the last sentence in my journal, the familiar rumble of the Impala that I'd grown so used to hearing filled my ears. Closing my diary, I looked outside my window and saw Dean leaning against the hood of the Impala looking up at me with a lopsided grin. I felt my mood instantly brighten when I saw the impish glint in his emerald eyes. 

There was something about how he was always upbeat in even the grimmest situations without ignoring the problem. He was always lighthearted and goofy and he always persevered in a crisis. It reminded me that he knows what it's like to lose both of your parents and still keep going. All it did was give me one more reminder that I'm not alone.

I smiled back at him, before turning around to grab my things, and then I went downstairs to go out and meet him. When I got to the Impala or "Baby" as he calls her, I immediately threw my arms around him in a tight hug and let myself soak up his presence. 

"Hey, beautiful," he said after we finally let go. 

"Hey," I said. 

"I hate to be _that_ guy, but I've gotta ask, are you okay?" He asked tentatively. I hesitated. On the one hand, I could do exactly what I said I would and just change the subject. However, I'm pretty sure he would see straight through that lie. So instead of lying to him, I told him the truth. 

"I'll get there eventually." He huffed lightly and brought me in for another hug. This time, we both held on a little longer. Great. It's the beginning of the day and I'm already getting emotional.

"All right, all right, no more chick-flick moments," he sighed softly. I nodded in agreement. Then, he opened up the passenger door and stepped aside to let me get into the car. "Hey, Elena," a feminine voice said behind me as the car door closed. I turned around and saw my friend Bonnie smiling at me. 

_Time to put on my brave face._ I thought. 

"Hey, Bonnie," I said, then I turned to the boy sitting next to her and greeted him as well. "Hi, Sam." "Hey, Elena," he replied. Just then, Dean opened up the door and slid into the driver's seat, his keys clinking together as he went. 

"Okay, everybody, seatbelts on?" Dean asked.

"Yes," we answered back. 

"Alright," he said. Then, he started up the car and drove off. 

* * *

We were driving through the town square past Main Street and all Bonnie could talk about were the crazy things her Grams told her. "So Grams is telling me I'm psychic," Bonnie said. "That's funny, she also said the same thing to me," Sam snarked. "Something about sensing an otherworldly presence within me and being able to glimpse into the future. She even said I can read minds." Dean chuckled softly at the two of them and I allowed myself a small smile.

"Haha, but seriously. She said our ancestors were from Salem, which isn't all that crazy, but she keeps going on and on about it, and I'm just like put this woman in a home already!" Bonnie explained. "But then I started thinking and I predicted Obama, I predicted Heath Ledger, and I still think that Florida..." By that point, I had zoned off and resigned myself to staring out of the window, as we passed by the cemetery. Thoughts of my parents' deaths flooded my mind and just like that, whatever happiness I had felt earlier was gone.

"Hey," Dean's voice called out to me. "Huh?" I shook myself out of my thoughts and turned to face him. "Are you okay?" He asked. I looked around and realized that everyone was staring at me. "I'm sorry, I did it again. I'm so sorry, guys," I apologized. "There's nothing to be sorry for, Elena," Sam consoled. "It's fine."

"So, uh, Bonnie, you were talking about the fact that..." Dean changed the subject, thankfully. Bonnie seemed to understand his meaning and went right back to talking about her newfound psychic powers. I honestly have the best friends ever. 

"Okay, how 'bout you predict something," Sam challenged, "and it has to be about Dean and Elena." "Whoa, wait up, little bro, why do I have to be in this?" Dean protested. "Because Bonnie is obviously gonna say something happy about Elena, but the same can't be said about you," Sam retorted.

Bonnie and I looked at each other with wide eyes, as we struggled to contain our laughter. 

"Bitch!" Dean snapped.

"Jerk!" Sam quipped. 

"Boys," I said warningly, having mostly calmed down. Dean rolled his eyes in annoyance, focusing back on the road. However, I could see small traces of a smirk playing across his lips. "Okay, okay," Bonnie cleared her throat. "I predict that Elena--"

"SON OF A BITCH!" Dean shouted, just as a crow crashed into the windshield. Before anyone could say anything, the bird flew off and Dean slammed his foot on the breaks causing all of us to lurch forward, as the Impala swerved around the corner and came to a jilted stop. "What was that?" Bonnie gasped. "Oh, my God!" Sam breathed.

I, however, couldn't say anything because I was too busy fighting off a panic attack. As if sensing my distress, Dean gave me his full, undivided attention and attempted to calm me down. "It's okay, you're okay. Just breathe, alright?" I did as he instructed and took slow, deep breaths before slumping against the backrest of the bench. "I'm okay," I sighed airily. Dean visibly relaxed, and I could see most of the tension leave his shoulders.

"Was that a bird that just flew across the windshield?" Sam inquired. "It just came out of nowhere," Bonnie piggybacked. "Yeah, well if I ever see that flying rat again, I'll shoot it!" Dean glared. "Elena, are you sure you're okay?" Sam asked. 

"Yeah, Sam. I-I can't be freaked out by cars for the rest of my life," I responded. Then, Bonnie smiled at all of us and said, "I predict that this year is going to be kickass. And I predict that all the sad and dark times are over with and we are all going to be beyond happy." We all grinned at Bonnie's statement.

"Well then, here's to an awesome school year, unlike any we've ever had," Dean proclaimed. "Here's to us kickin' ass and taking names and living up our high school lives."

"Amen," Bonnie agreed.

"Here, here!" Sam replied.

Then, Dean turned those dazzling green eyes to me and smiled encouragingly. I grinned and nodded. "Yeah."

"Attagirl!" Dean chimed. Then he started up the car again and we continued driving on our way to school with renewed spirits.

However, we didn't notice the same crow from earlier leering at us from where it was perched on the stop sign. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you want to check out the original version of this story, it's on Wattpad and I am much further ahead on there. Note, also that I will always update this story on Wattpad first, then I will update this one.
> 
> I will try to update on Ao3 every other week, since I have a lot to re-post. Once I get the chapter count on Ao3 caught up with Wattpad, I'll revise the update schedule.


	5. The New Student, Part I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new student arrives at Mystic Falls High.

As the four teenagers strolled down the crowded hallways, Bonnie began her typical beginning-of-the-new-school-year rant. "Ugh! Major lack of male real estate," she scoffed. "Well, I wouldn't say that B. I'm sure there are some good-looking guys for you to bang around here somewhere," Dean smirked. Bonnie gaped and hit him in the shoulder. "Rude!" 

"And that is where I take my leave," Sam gagged, before scurrying off down the hallway. Dean grinned proudly, "And that is how you get rid of your little brother!" 

"Oh, my God!" Bonnie gawked. "Look at the shower curtain on Kelly Beach!" Dean turned and gazed in Bonnie's line of vision and visibly cringed. "Ooh, that skirt doesn't look good on anybody!" The girls gave him a peculiar look. "What?" He said defensively. "A blind man could see that! Plus, I do kind of pay attention when you two talk fashion." "Then why do you insist on wearing flannel, denim, and plaid every day?" Elena questioned. "'Cause, it's my sense of style that I grew up in," he answered back.

"God, this is gonna be a busy year," Bonnie stated. "Find a man, coin a phrase, get Dean to wear something that isn't flannel." Dean sputtered indignantly, as he opened his locker. "Bonnie!" He called. 

"I think that last one might take a little time," Elena joked, giving a lighthearted smile. 

"Ah, shit!" Dean swore as he spotted a familiar face staring at them from across the hall. "Category II Hurricane Donovan at six o'clock." Elena followed Dean's gaze and found Matt staring at her solemnly. She shot him an awkward smile, but he just walked away in response. "Crap. Look, guys, I'd love to stay here with y'all, but..." Dean started. "It's fine, Dean, go make sure he's okay," Elena sighed. "You sure?" He asked again. "He's your friend, too," Bonnie chimed in.

"Thanks, Bon. See you both in history." Then, he closed his locker and bolted off after his friend. Elena leaned against her locker, burying her face in her hands. "He hates me," she groaned. 

"That's not hating," Bonnie countered. "That's "you dumped me and I'm too cool to show it, but secretly I'm listening to Air Supply's Greatest Hits" behavior." Elena winced at her friend's words.

Just then, Caroline showed up and wrapped Elena up in a tight bear hug. "Elena, are you okay? How are you?" she said. Once she let go of her, the blonde turned to Bonnie and repeated the question. Elena huffed and said, "Caroline, I'm right here. I'm okay; thank you."

"Really?" 

"Yes, much better." Caroline breathed a sigh of relief, before pulling Elena back into a choking embrace. "You poor thing," she sighed. "Okay, Caroline," Elena wheezed. 

Caroline bid her goodbyes to her colleagues then pranced off to her first class. Bonnie and Elena shared a look and then started in the direction of their history class. 

* * *

On the other side of the school behind the dumpsters in the Stoner Pit, Jeremy was kicking back with the "legendary druggie and stoner slut" Vicki Donovan and dealing her drugs. "Don't take more than two in a six-hour window," he said, handing her a vial of pills. She smirked before downing two and pocketing the rest. 

"Really, Jeremy?" a voice called out behind them.

They both turned, worried that they'd been caught by a teacher. However, they relaxed when they came face-to-face with the person who spoke. "Damn it, Sam, try not to sneak up on a guy, will ya?" Jeremy grumbled. "If you stop sneaking off to the Stoner Pit, I won't have to!" Sam shot back. "Come on, man. Let's go!" 

Unfortunately, Jeremy was no longer listening to what his friend had to say and focused his attention back on Vicki Donovan. "Dude, seriously, we're gonna be late to class. Let's go!" Sam snapped. Jeremy rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, in a minute." 

"You should listen to your friend, Gilbert," said Tyler Lockwood, as he approached the trio. "You have got to be kidding me," Sam exhaled. Jeremy rolled his eyes at the brutish jock, while Vicki smiled. "Vicki Donovan, I knew I'd find you with the crackheads," he flirted, wrapping an arm around her waist. Both Sam and Jeremy visibly cringed, as Vicki practically threw herself at Tyler. 

"By the way," Tyler began, "Pete Wentz called, and he wants his nail polish back. Make sure he does it, Winchester." Sam scoffed, "Yeah, sure thing, right as soon as you give Marilyn Manson back his nose." "By the way, that Pete Wentz reference was very old school "T. R. L." of you," Jeremy retorted. 

Tyler glowered at the two boys, but neither one of them seemed to be perturbed. "Okay, well, this has been fun and all, but if you're done glaring at us like Pennywise, then Jeremy and I do need to get to class," Sam huffed. "You two should watch yourselves before you get hurt," Tyler warned. 

"Maybe you should instead," Sam remarked. "After all, we're just starting the new school year, and we wouldn't want anything to happen to our star running back." 

"Okay, easy boys. Calm down," Vicki cut in. "I am calm, it's these emo punks who are pissing me off!" Tyler raised his voice. Both Sam and Jeremy wanted nothing more than to kick Lockwood's ass, but Sam knew that wouldn't bode well for them, especially on the first day to school as Freshman. Plus, Sam really wasn't joking. He could honestly cripple Tyler for life in an instant if he applied enough pressure to the right nerves in the spinal cord. "Alright, we're done here," Sam cleared his throat. 

"Yeah, that's smart, Winchester. Why don't you and Tweedle-Dumber run along?" Unfortunately at that moment, Jeremy just had to have the final word. "At least I'm not a Carson Daily fan, dick!" He barked. Tyler lunged at the young Gilbert, but Sam stepped in and pushed him back slightly.

"Oh, you wanna fight, too?" Tyler seethed.

"Not particularly, but I will if I have to."

"Ty, be nice," Vicki warned, despite the lack of seriousness in her voice. "They are Elena and Dean's little brothers." Sam held back a scoff. It seemed that was all Sam was good for these days. Being Dean's little brother. It wouldn't matter as much if other people saw all the other things Sam did in his own time. But all they see him as is the kid brother of Mystic Falls High's star linebacker and soon-to-be graduate.

That's another thing.

Dean would be graduating early in a few months before his nineteenth birthday. He would be going off to college and he'd leave Mystic Falls.

He'd leave Sam.

Shaking himself out of his thoughts, Sam realized that Tyler had still been talking and he spaced out. "I know who they are, but I'll still kick their asses," he said just before kissing Vicki. Sam gagged and looked ready to walk away. However, he saw how upset Jeremy was and paused. Then he let out a sharp exhale and clapped his friend on the shoulder. 

"C'mon. Let's get outta here." 


	6. The New Student, Part II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The squad has their first encounter with the newest student at school. Dean knows more than he's letting on.

"Hold up, who is this?" Bonnie chimed.

Elena paused and looked to see who her friend was referring to. There, she laid eyes on a mysterious stranger wrapped in a leather jacket and hoodie. He was quite tall and had short, reddish-brown hair, but that was all she could tell since his back was to her and her friend. "Well, all I see is back," she said. 

"It's a hot back."

Over in the registrar's office, the woman was speaking to the mysterious new student and said, "Your records are incomplete, you're missing immunization records, and we do insist on transcripts." Then the student lowered his shades, leering at her intensely as his pupils dilated under the fluorescent lights. 

"Please look again," he said. "I'm sure you have everything you need."

The secretary stared dazedly and emotionless before suddenly responding with, "Well, you're right. So it is."

"I'm sensing Seattle and he plays the guitar," Bonnie squinted. Elena laughed lightly. "You are really going to run this psychic thing into the ground, aren't you?" 

"Uh-huh."

Elena laughed and shook her head accordingly. 

"Hey, Jeremy, this way," she heard Sam say from down the hall. She looked up and sure enough, Sam was trying to smuggle a very stoned Jeremy into the boys' room. She narrowed her eyes and started walking off to catch up with them. "I'll be right back."

In the restroom, Sam was ranting to himself about how it was too early for Jeremy to be picking fights and getting bombed, as he fished a vial of eye drops out of his bag and handed them to his friend in annoyance. "Sssaamm, the maannn. Alllwaays c'min' throuugh fer me," Jeremy slurred. "Shut up and take the damn drops, Jay!" Sam hissed. 

"Are you kidding me?" a new voice rang out. Sam winced in recognition and turned around to see Elena fuming at her little brother. "Crap!" He exhaled. Sam took the vial back from his friend and raised his arms in surrender while looking at Elena. She looked at Dean's brother expectantly for some kind of explanation. "Long-story-short, he got high at the Stoner Pit, Tyler showed up, insults were hurled both ways, but I got him out of there before it got too hairy," Sam stated. 

"Bro!"

"Uh-uh! Don't give me that," Sam yelled, snapping Jeremy out of his haze and startling Elena. "You are the one who's got your ass on the line, not me! I can't keep bailing you out of every situation; you've got to grow up."

Elena had never seen Sam this mad before. Sure Dean has been known to frequently lose his temper when aggravated, but Sam was always so well-mannered and cool-headed.

Until now.

"Okay, Sammy," she cut in, "I can take it from here. Thank you."

"By all means, Elly, he's all yours!" Then Sam grabbed his stuff and stormed out of the restroom.

Once he was out of the restroom, Elena glowered at her brother. "Great. It's the first day of school and you're stoned." "No, I'm not," Jeremy denied. "Really? Your best friend was lying about you picking fights and getting high?" She countered. He averted his eyes from her and folded his arms over his chest. 

"Where is it?" She demanded. "Is it on you?" She reached for his pockets and he immediately pushed her away. "No, stop it, Elena. Damn, you need to chill yourself, alright?" he griped. "Chill myself? What is that, stoner talk? Dude, you are so cool," she snarked. Elena continued to look through his stuff and he continued to resist. "Look, stop! I don't have anything on me, are you crazy?"

"You haven't seen crazy, Jeremy!" she yelled. "I gave you a summer pass, but I am done watching you destroy yourself." He got up to leave, but she held him back fiercely. "No, no, no, no, no! You know what, keep it up. But just know that I will be there to ruin your buzz every time, you got it?" All he did was roll his eyes and push past her on his way out of the restroom. 

When she heard the door slam shut, she let out a groan of frustration. It was only after she was able to gather her wits a few minutes later that she turned and exited the men's room and nearly walked right into the mysterious new guy. 

"Uh, pardon me," he said.

She stared in awe at the young man standing in front of her. From his perfectly coiffed medium brown hair, to his defined jaw, his piercing hazel-green eyes, and strong Roman nose and perfect lips. He looked like your typical romance novel hero character. "Um, isn't this the men's room?" he inquired. It was then that she finally snapped out of it and realized what he meant. 

"Yes, um. I was just-- it's a long story," she stammered awkwardly. She tried to step aside to go around him, but at the same time, he also stepped aside to let her pass. This happened a few more times before Elena finally got around him and walked away. However, as she did, she turned back to look at the mysterious stranger and he caught her eye. Then, she disappeared around the corner. The new guy smiled, but before he entered the restroom, he felt someone else's eyes on him as well and turned to look at them. 

As soon as he met their gaze, he stopped in his tracks. For the person observing him was none other than Dean Winchester. It was clear that he had watched the entire interaction and wasn't very pleased if it was any indication by his furrowed brow, narrowed eyes, and clenched jaw.

To most people, that would have been intimidating. However, the new guy stood his ground. Before he could react, Dean was walking in his direction down the same path that Elena had gone. But then he stopped once he got close enough to the new student that he could hear Dean whisper to him. An unspoken conversation passed between the two of them, as they shared a knowing look and then Dean sighed loudly and shook his head. "She doesn't deserve this, man," he said.

"I know," came the other guy's response. 

"Then, you know what I'll do to you if you hurt her," Dean stated more than asked. The immortal gave him the side-eye. "Yes."

Dean nodded, seemingly satisfied with the man's answer. "Just so we're clear," Dean said, clapping the guy's shoulder. "See you in history, and warn me if you see any sign of--" "Trust me, if _he_ comes back, Dean, you'll be the first to know." The Hunter pulled his lips together tightly. 

"Later, Stefan."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This next week after Thanksgiving break I won't update because of school. I will try to put up as many chapters as I can this week so that I don't leave you guys hanging for too long. Hopefully, I will be fully caught up with the Wattpad version of this story by the end of next week or the week after, and then I can continue with the story as planned with a new update schedule. 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. And don't be afraid to comment to tell me how you liked it. 
> 
> Which relationship are you all excited to see the most? Which character do you want to interact with the Winchesters next? Who's point of view are you most interested to see?


	7. Elena II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elena tries to make it through the day, and gets to know a little bit more about Mystic Falls' newest resident.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, as you could probably tell by the tags, I have decided to switch things up a little in terms of "shipping." Stelena will still happen don't worry... it just won't happen during the beginning of this story. So, for all you Stelena shippers, please, just hang tight, okay? Actually, while I'm on the subject of shipping, I feel I should say that all of the ships involving Elena have changed... Drastically. Not really for Caroline, although, I did add in a ship that you'll find out about later. Damon's love life has definitely changed... and not just because I made him bi either.

As soon as I walked into class, I realized that Dean and the new student both occupied the seats next to each other and they seemed to be deep in conversation. however, as soon as they saw me, they stopped talking. Weird. I brushed it off and took a seat next to Dean and greeted him. 

"Hey."

"Hey, Lena," he replied. 

I rolled my eyes in feigned annoyance at the nickname he saddled me with three years ago. I quickly glanced at the new guy and waved and he repeated the gesture with a smile. Then, I turned around and saw Matt sitting a few seats behind the three of us. He seemed to be in better spirits, but the same look from this morning was still in his eyes. 

Great!

* * *

"Once our home state of Virginia joined the Confederacy in 1861, it created a tremendous amount of tension within the state," Mr. Tanner explained. And that wasn't the only tension happening in Virginia. I was stuck in between three guys. On the one side, Matt was pining after me like a lost puppy, but I don't feel the same way. I hate that I hurt him so badly, but I can't help how I feel. 

On the other side, this new guy has this certain... allure about him that made me want to get to know him better. Maybe it was his mysterious appearance in Mystic Falls or maybe it was his clear interest in me. Or maybe it was something else entirely. 

Finally, we have Dean, who I am pretty sure I've had a crush on since summer break. Maybe even a little bit before when I was still with Matt. At first, it started out small, like a flicker. I don't know when it turned into this monumental bonfire that won't go out. As much as i feel myself being drawn to the new guy, I feel a stronger pull where Dean is concerned. 

I inwardly cringed. I don't want to be that girl who's always getting caught up with more than one boy. I just want to go to school without the drama. However, that seems to be impossible for me.

That's when I suddenly felt my phone vibrate. When I pulled it out and opened up the text message, I noticed that Bonnie had sent it. It read: **HAWT-E. STARING @ U.**

I stifled a smile.

* * *

Later that day after school, I was strolling past the cemetery to pay respects to my parents and heard the squawk of a bird nearby.

_Dear Diary,_

_I made it through the day._

_I must have said, "I'm fine, thanks," at least 37 times. And I didn't mean it once. But no one noticed. Like I originally said, Dean was probably the only person that I was going to be honest with today. When someone asks, "how are you" they really don't want an answer._

_In other news, I finally admitted the truth to myself about something I've been struggling with; my feelings for Dean. And the truth is... I like him a lot. The only thing concerning me now is whether or not he feels the same way. Even if he did, would he admit it?_

As I scribbled away in my diary, I saw the same bird from earlier appear out of the corner of my eye atop my parents' headstone. It continued to stare at me with a striking pair of eerie bluish-black eyes. Suddenly, a sharp chill ran down my spine, as I got the feeling that I was being watched. And that's when the fog rolled in, slowly at first, but eventually it crept over the entire graveyard.

I immediately jumped up and looked around to see if anyone was there, all the while, the crow was cawing like a maniac. Carefully, I bent down to grab my bag and then darted off into the woods away from the cemetery. I only turned around once and, I swear for a brief moment, my heart stopped. I didn't see the intruder's face, it was too foggy for that. However, I did see a glimpse of his silhouette standing ominously next to one of the statues. I gasped then turned back around and started running again.

And as if it had a mind of its own, the fog came barreling after me and I urged my legs to move faster. Unfortunately, I tripped over a broken branch and tumbled down the small hill until I hit a tree near the riverbank. I screwed my eyes shut in pain and got back on my feet.

"You okay?" a voice said behind me.

I leaped ten feet in the air and whirled around frightfully. I relaxed somewhat when I saw it was only Stefan. Once I caught enough of my breath to speak coherently, I asked him, "Were you following me?" "No, I, uh-- I just saw you fall," he replied. I gave him a suspicious look. "Uh-huh, and you just happened to be hanging out in the cemetery."

"I'm visiting," he countered. "I have family here." 

Oh. Wow. Tactless.

_'Way to go, Elena.'_

"I'm sorry. It's the fog, it's making me... foggy," I responded awkwardly. For the next few minutes, I rambled about a bird and Hitchcock, unsure of what I was saying or even what point I was trying to make. Finally, I just gave up and introduced myself.

"I'm Elena."

"I'm Stefan."

"I know, my friend Dean told me about you," I replied. "Also, we have history together."

"And English and French."

I nodded in remembrance. "Right." "Oh, you, uh, have something right..." he reached out and pulled a twig out of my hair, "there." I felt my face heat up and I hoped to God that I wasn't blushing. We stood in silence for a few moments, before I noticed a peculiar accessory on his right hand. "Nice ring," I said. 

"Oh, um, it's a family ring, yeah," he smiled. "I'm kinda stuck with it. It's weird, right?" "No, no, it's, I mean, there are rings and then there's that," I chuckled.

"Just then, a frown crossed his face, and he looked down at my ankle. "Did you hurt yourself?" I followed his gaze and looked down before I set my leg up against a rock and rolled up the bottom of my pant leg. Sure enough, I had a small cut on my leg with blood dripping down my ankle. "Whoa! Would you look at that?" I winced. "That is not pretty." I looked up from my wound and saw that Stefan had his back to me. "Are you okay?" I asked. "You should go," he said, a hint of a growl in his voice. "Take care of that." I shrugged it off with a sigh and pulled my pant leg back down. "Really, it's nothing." But by the time, I turned around, he was already gone.

Well, that was odd.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will try to update at least three more times today and then maybe four more tomorrow.


	8. Unknown II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's back, back, back? Back again-gain-gain? Guess who's back, guess who's back, guess who's back, guess who's back?

My life has never been better. 

I'm finally coming home after all these long years and I'm genuinely happy about it. Although, some other people might not be happy to see me. But hey, that's the fun of it.

Besides, since when have I ever cared about other people's feelings?

Anyway, now that I'm back in Mystic Falls, the time for fun and games has officially ended... at least for now. You see, I've got a whole itinerary of things to do and not enough time to do them, which means I have to work post-haste to get it all done and keep _him_ off my trail. Now, that shouldn't be too hard, I mean, come on, it's me. Plus, my brother has never been the sharpest tool in the shed. 

However, the person I really want to keep off my back is my brother's annoying little sidekick with a bad attitude and an unhealthy obsession with flannel and denim. Fortunately for me, though, if I can create enough chaos with some of the more important people living in this town, then those two bozos will be too distracted with trying to protect them to worry about what I'm up to. The bonus is that I get to pay up on some eternity-long torture bills. Having said that, it'll still be strange being back in town after so many years away. Part of me just wants to turn tail and run, and never look back, while the other part of me screams that I should go back for _her_.

Ultimately, that's the voice that always wins out. It's my ties to her that keeps pulling me back to this place. But all that changes now.

Oh, and BTW-- that means by the way-- if you haven't guessed who I am by now, you're an idiot! But even still...

My name is Damon Salvatore.

And I'm just getting started with Mystic Falls.


	9. Stefan I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stefan contemplates his emotions, and news spreads about the missing people in Mystic Falls.

_I lost control today. Everything I've kept buried inside came rushing to the surface. I'm simply not able to resist her. But I know that I have to. Especially, now that Dean is in the picture. If I hurt Elena, I'd never forgive myself. And after all the hell Dean went through to look out for me, if I betray his trust, well... I don't know what I'd do._

_After all, he is the closest thing to a brother that I've had in a long, long time. I almost forgot what it was like to have someone that loyal and trustworthy in my life._

Just then, there was a knock at my bedroom door. I turned around in my chair to see who it was and speak of the devil and he shall appear. "Dean, hey!" I said.

"Hey, man."

"What are you doing here?" I asked. Dean scoffed lightly, "What I can't visit an old friend without a doom and gloom reason?" I shrugged in response. Dean rolled his eyes and entered the room. "Well, if I'm being honest, I'm here on business."

I arched my brow. "Business?" 

It was only then that I noticed the newspaper in his left hand with a headline that read: **_A COUPLE M.I.A. ON HIGHWAY 90!_**

You know that feeling you get when watching a scary movie and you just know that the monster is going to jump out somewhere? Well, that's how I feel right now. "You don't think I did this, do you?" I inquired carefully. "You wouldn't be breathin' right now if I did," he replied immediately.

The dread I felt creeping into my heart twisted violently and I immediately felt like I had something to lose now. I got up out of my chair and grabbed the newspaper out of his hand. After skimming through the entire article, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath to control myself, before turning back to Dean and returning the paper. 

"So what now?" I asked.

"Well, hopefully, this is nothing and the couple gets found soon, preferably alive and unharmed," Dean replied.

"And if not?"

Dean gave me a look. "I think that part's obvious."

My shoulders sagged in exhaustion as i knew what was coming next.

"We got work to do."


	10. Sam I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam discovers something untoward about the town. The first body turns up dead in Mystic Falls.

_Well, the first day of school was relatively painless and it practically went off without a hitch. Yeah, there was a little trouble with Jeremy, Vicki, and Tyler earlier this morning, but that was the only real issue. Speaking of Vicki, I honestly can't stand her and how much of a bad influence she is on J.J. Don't get me wrong, Jeremy can do enough damage to himself as it is, but having her around makes it worse. The last thing he needs is this bitch luring him in and pushing him out in some toxic, repetitive cycle._

_Truth be told, the reason why I'm so worried about Jeremy being with her is because I almost fell for her games once, too, almost two years ago. Luckily, Dean nipped that in the bud, or I'd have probably ended up worse than Jeremy. Although, I guess at the time, I wasn't exactly grateful for Dean stepping in the way he did. I should probably remember to thank him for that._

_Anyway, aside from that drama, things have been relatively quiet in Mystic Falls; they have been for almost three years now and it's something I've wanted for so long. It still feels like it's only a dream. I just hope that this is one dream I won't have to wake up from._

Suddenly, I was pulled out of my thoughts by the voice of one of the news anchors on the big flat-screen television high up on the wall behind the bar counter. "Hey, Miles," I said to the bartender behind the counter, "can you turn that up?" He nodded. "Sure thing, Sammy." As he turned up the volume on the TV, I heard the anchor say, _"We are coming in to report that one of the three missing persons has just been found dead in the woods just outside of town. Forensics says, it was an animal attack due to the heavy amounts of blood loss from scratches along her body and multiple bruises from blunt-force trauma that can only come from being mauled. This is the first victim to be found dead after being reported missing a week ago. The victim has also been recently identified as a 22-year-old college student named Eris Rivera. Her body was discovered by a pair of hikers 36 hours ago bloody, battered, and nearly torn apart. There are photographs of the recently deceased from the autopsy report that were taken for your viewing and we warn you, the images you are about to see are graphic."_

Within the next few seconds, the image they showed depicted a Hispanic woman with honey blonde hair lying dead over an autopsy table with gnarly cuts and gashes scattered over her pale, ashen skin. I heard more than a few gasps from people inside the diner and even heard a woman cry out in horror. However, my full attention was on a pair of puncture holes on the side of the victim's neck that made me jump out of my seat in surprise. "Oh, my God!" I said to myself. 

"Damn, that is a wicked bite on her neck!" a familiar voice said behind me. I turned around and saw Jeremy cringe at the image of the woman's body on-screen. "Yeah, yeah, it's, uh..." I rubbed my nose, "it's pretty gruesome." I must've looked agitated because Jeremy gave me a worried look. "Hey, man, are you good?" I looked up at him swiftly. "What? Oh, yeah, I'm just-- I mean, it's... fine, fine. Everything is... yeah, man, I'm sorry, but I, uh, I gotta jet. Dean's cooking dinner and I gotta make sure he doesn't burn down the house, you know?" I stammered. I didn't wait for him to respond, as I quickly packed up my things and swung my bag over my shoulder, while Jeremy looked at me in utter confusion. 

As I headed for the exit, Jeremy called out after me and said, "Wait, hold on. What's wrong?" I looked back and opened and closed my mouth repeatedly, vying for some kind of excuse; some kind of lie, but I found none. All I could do was look back at the picture of that poor girl on the TV and then give my friend an apologetic look, before walking back towards the exit. 

Once I walked out of the Grill, I closed my eyes and inhaled the cool, crisp Autumn air, the last breath of normalcy that I was sure to get for a while. Then, I pulled out my phone and dialed my brother, and started walking back to Aunt Sheila's house. The phone rang at least four times before I finally got an answer, _"Hey, what's up?"_ "Trouble, Dean, that's what," I replied. "I just saw the latest news report on the three missing persons at the Grill, one of the two missing girls was found dead with her throat ripped out. Coroner's Office says it's a wild animal, but I saw the bite marks on her neck. They don't look big enough to be a large animal bite, and unless the girl got attacked by an entire army of squirrels or raccoons, there's no way she got mauled by an animal either."

Silence, and then, _"Sammy, I thought I was supposed to be the paranoid Hunter in the family. Relax, okay? It probably was an animal attack."_ I paused dead in my tracks and subtly looked around at my surroundings. "Somehow, I doubt that, Dean." _"Why?"_ Dean asked. "Because I think there's something stuck to my shoe," I replied lowly. As soon as I said that, I heard the fluttering of a bird's wings nearby... and apparently so did Dean.

_"What the hell was that noise in the background, I heard fluttering?"_

"Nothing, it was just a bird or something," I replied. 

_"Okay, Sam, I need to listen to me very carefully: get back to Sheila's house right now and lock all the doors and windows,"_ Dean said frantically. I furrowed my brow in confusion. "What? Dean, what's going on?" _"Sammy, please just listen to me, alright? Don't talk to anyone, don't make any stops, don't take any detours, do not pass go, and do not collect $200. I'll be there at Sheila's as soon as possible, but I need you to run."_ I felt my heart rate spike at the panicked tone in my brother's voice. Never in my entire life have I heard my brother as scared as he was right now. Suddenly, I heard a whoosh somewhere nearby. "Dean, there's something out here," I heaved. _"Okay, Sam, when you get to the house, do not under any circumstances invite anyone besides me and Sheila into the house, understand?"_ he asked. "Yeah," I breathed. 

_"Now_ , _run, Sammy. Run!"_

The moment the line went dead, I broke out into a run and I didn't stop until I reached my aunt's house. 

* * *

By the time I got there, my legs were aching and my lungs were on fire. Sweat drenched my clothes, forehead, and neck and I fumbled with the keys briefly. However, once I got the door open, I leaped through the threshold, closed the door, and collapsed onto the floor. But before I passed out from exhaustion, in my haze, I caught sight of a familiar crow perched on one of the banisters just outside on the porch. 

When I woke up, I was in my room laying on my bed. Looking over at the clock on my nightstand, I saw the time said _8:34._ "What?" I mumbled groggily. I slowly pulled back the blankets covering me and sat at the edge of the mattress, trying to will myself awake. Then I carefully stood up and dragged myself down the hall to towards the light in the living room. 

There, I found my brother talking with Sheila on the couch in hushed tones. I leaned in close to hear what they were saying and could distinctly make out Dean's voice. "He's too young to be mixed up in this crap," he said. 

"Sweetheart, he's been mixed up in this ever since he was a baby," came Sheila's reply. 

Dean grunted. "Yeah, you don't gotta remind me. I just... I just want something better for him than this life. He deserves to have a somewhat normal life." 

"And he will be," she said a little louder. "He has been for three years." I heard Dean get up from the couch abruptly, "Yeah, but I don't want it to last three years, I want it to last a lifetime, to hell with the cost!"

Dead silence enveloped the room.

"What are you thinking about doing, baby?"

"He came after my brother, Sheila," Dean said in a dangerously low tone. "My little brother, damn it!" 

Wait. What?

Who came after me?

And how does Dean know them?

"Now listen," Sheila snapped. "You don't know that for certain, it could've been someone else."

"Oh, really, who?" Dean argued. "Who else knows about my brother and would be ballsy enough to make a move on him?"

"Watch your mouth, boy!" she griped. "You still livin' in my house."

"I'm gonna kill him!"

"Just wait a minute, Dean."

"Three people went missing, Sheila! One of them turned up dead, and the other two probably ain't that far behind. I can't wait anymore!" Dean yelled. "Not while that bastard is lurking out there planning to kill somebody else. What if he goes after Sam again, and I'm too late? What if he goes after Caroline or Bonnie or Matt or even you? What if... what if he hurts Elena?" "Oh, you poor thing," Sheila murmured. I saw a glimpse of her hugging my brother and holding him tight. The sight alone nearly broke my heart. "It's gonna be okay, Dean," she cooed. "You're not going to lose anyone else."

"You're right," he sniffled, pulling away from her, "I'm not."

He pulled Dad's old jacket over his body and grabbed his gun and a clip full of... were those wooden bullets?

"If Damon Salvatore wants a fight, I'll be sure to give him one!"

Then, he walked out of the house and slammed the door shut behind him. 

"I know you're there, Sam. Come on out," Sheila exhaled. I winced at being caught, but I slowly made my appearance in front of her. "I just have one question, Sheila," I said slowly. "Who the hell is Damon Salvatore?"

She gestured over to the couch and said, "Come sit with me?"

I nodded and we both made our way back to the couch and took a seat next to each other. "Now, what I'm about to tell you does not leave this house or get repeated to anyone, understand?"

I quirked my brow. "Not even Dean?"

"Your brother knows already, honey," she remarked. I sighed deeply but nodded even still. "Okay, I promise." 

"Good," she mused. "Now I'm going to tell a story not just about Damon, but about the origins of all the supernatural things that happened to them and to this town."

I balked in surprise. "Aunt Sheila, just how far back does this story go?" 

She smiled sadly. "A long time ago."


	11. Dean II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean confronts an old rival... and gets more than he bargained for out of the experience.

I hate monsters.

I hate how they look, I hate how they act, and I hate what they do.

Keep in mind Stefan may a vampire, but his brother's the real monster. Speaking of Damon, he is nowhere to be found. I'm honestly tempted to lay in the middle of the road with a cut on my arm to lure him out, at this point. After all, I had been trudging along through the woods for what felt like a half hour and still hadn't found any sign of him; not even that damn bird he keeps as a pet. Although, I guess that's to be expected. Anyone who knows anything about Damon Salvatore knows that you don't find him, he finds you. And if you do manage to find him, then he wanted you to, which-- more often than not-- means that you're royally boned. 

I sighed in frustration. I was about ready to give up the search altogether, and I prepared to turn and go back the way I arrived. That's when it happened. 

Just then, fog materialized out of seemingly nowhere and accumulated throughout the forest. My shoulders tensed and the hairs on the back of neck stood at attention, as I heard an audible sound of wind moving behind me. I rolled my eyes and turned around. "Really?" I shouted. "You're trying to scare me now?" Then, I heard another the whoosh of another brief gust from the direction I'd previously turned from. "Damon, quit screwing around!" I barked. "Only if you say, "please," Winchester," a snarky and annoying voice called out behind me. Quickly, I whirled around and was immediately met with the sight of Damon Salvatore leaning against a tree. He was wrapped in leather jacket, as per his usual fashion, and had the same familiar, mischievous twinkle in his eyes with a sadistic and condescending smirk to match. 

Have I mentioned how much I want to punch the smug look off his face before?

"Well," he drawled, snapping me out of my thoughts, "I'm waiting."

A quirked a suspicious brow at him. "For what?"

"For you to say please," Damon quipped. 

I scoffed indignantly, "Yeah, no can do about nothing, Sweetheart. I'm all out of pleases." "Aw, damn, ain't that a shame?" Damon pouted, standing straight up and walking towards me until we were only a handful of inches apart. "I like it when you beg." "So, you found out that I wanted to speak with you?" I asked, promptly ignoring the sexuality of his comment. 

"Word gets around," he replied simply. 

I nodded curtly. "Good."

Then I swung my fist at his face before he could react and I punched him... Hard. To his surprise, and probably yours, too, he actually got hurt. How do I know that? Because I saw him wipe away a small trace of blood from under his nose, laughing as he did. "Wow! Well done, little Winchester," he sighed light-heartedly. "And even though I am sure I deserved such cruel treatment, am I allowed to ask the specifics?" "Well, for one thing, that was for stalking my little brother, ass hat!" I hissed. "You have a brother?" Damon inquired. "Huh, I don't think I remember tailing him today. Now, if you asked me if I was hunting this really lanky kid, about yea tall, probably tastes divine, but I never got the chance to sink my fangs into him..." Without warning, I delivered several punches, kicks, and hits to the vampire, most of which he blocked but not without effort. Then, I kicked him in the chest sending him back a ways, giving me just enough time to pull out my gun and fire off three shots. He dodged the first, got hit in the shoulder by the second, which caused him to growl painfully. The third time he also dodged it, but instead he caught the bullet. 

"Wooden. Clever." He grunted as he threw the bullet onto the ground and wrenched the other one out of his shoulder. 

"Shut up!" I yelled. 

"You never did tell me the other reason you had for punching me," he panted. "I SAID SHUT UP!" He let out a pained laugh and I sneered, ready to unload the rest of the clip into his chest. "You already admitted to going after my little brother, and if that already wasn't reason enough to want to kill you, you also killed three innocent people, Damon!" I replied. 

I felt my blood freeze in my veins as the smile melted off his face. "Wait, three people? That's what's got you in a tizzy?" he questioned. "Huh. Well, now, consider me provoked, too."

"Oh, like you haven't been provoked already by something that happened 150 years ago."

"I am provoked, Dean. Especially, because I only killed _two_ people since I got into town," he replied briskly. 

This made me lower my firearm slowly from where it was aimed at his chest. 

"What are you talking about?" 

"I'm saying that I only recently got back in town and the couple on the highway were my first kills," he answered. "Whoever else got killed has got nothing to do with me."

"And why should I believe you?" I argued. He gave me a somber look that nearly took me off guard. "Because, Dean, despite our differences and against my better judgment, I wouldn't lie to you about this kind of thing," he responded. "And in case you haven't noticed, I take pride in my kills, I always leave my own special mark on them; you would know if I were the one who did it or not." I paused. What the hell was I supposed to say to that? And why did I feel myself being so inclined to believing him? "That's probably because you know I helped you out when you were having trouble with that mark on your wrist," he replied without missing a beat. It was then that I realized that I must've said that last question aloud. "Speaking of which," he continued, "how are you on that front? You feel the curse... tuggin' at your brain lately?" 

"Why do you want to know?" I griped.

"Aside from the obvious, can't a guy make sure his old friend has been mind-fucked by some ancient, mystical witchy-woo?" Damon inquired. "You and I are not friends, Damon," I shot back. "We never will be." "We used to be; the best of friends," Damon retorted. "Yeah, well, that was before you started to show your true colors and started killing innocent people again," I countered. "I only started killing again because of... nevermind," he cut himself off. "Because of what?" I asked. No response. "Because of what?" I repeated. 

"For the love of God, did you finish the curse or not?" he shouted.

"No!" I yelled back. "You can sleep easy... for now."

"Thank you, Dean. That's all I wanted to know," he said, throwing his arms in the air. With that, he turned and started to walk away. "Hey, Damon, I got one more thing to say," I called out after him. I saw his shoulders sag as though he were preparing himself to be berated. "What, Dean?" "Tonight I shot you in the shoulder with a wooden bullet, but if you go after anyone I care about in this town again, if you go after Sam again... I'll bury a stake in your heart."

"I kinda figured that, bonehead."

"And please stop making Stefan's life miserable, it's making it harder for me and my family to keep a low profile," I queried.

"No can do on that front; got an eternity of torture bills to pay up on," he smirked, as he shook his head.

"Why?" I snapped. "Why do this to your brother, he's your family?" "Well, our family isn't like the Winchesters or the Campbells for that matter," he snarked. I rolled my eyes at him crossly. "Regardless, he's all you got left, and from what I've seen, he's not a bad guy."

To show that he was officially done with this conversation, Damon started back in his original direction and sauntered off into the woods. As he went, I heard him say, "Everyone adores Stefan until they find out what he's done."

Then, he was gone. 

I furrowed my brow in confusion. While part of me was, again, inclined to believe him and was curious to know what the Salvatore patriarch meant by that, the other half already assumed that Damon was lying. Just like he was probably lying about his involvement in Eris Rivera's murder. And why not? He's a professional liar! That was just a fact of life.

Damon always lies. Doesn't he?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...? What do you think?


	12. Friendly Meetings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Matt suspects something is going on between Dean and Elena. The girls get to know Stefan more. And just what the hell is the mysterious mark on Dean's wrist?

Bonnie and Matt were hanging out at the Grill, as Matt droned on incessantly about Elena. 

As he's been doing for the last four months since she dumped him.

"How's Elena doing?" he asked. "Her parents just died, how do you think?" Bonnie replied. "She's putting on a good face, but it's only been four months." "Well, she seems to be doing better now," Matt stated. "At least that's what's Dean told me last week." Bonnie nodded but said nothing. "Well, he spent a lot of time with her this past summer, aside from his usual trip to Sioux Falls. They seem a lot closer together this year. Maybe too close." he said pointedly, giving Bonnie a look. She shook her head, already knowing what he was insinuating. "Oh, no," she rebuffed quickly. "So not getting in the middle of that. You ask them what's going on, not me."

* * *

Dean finally parked the Impala in the lot in front of the Grill and let his head fall back against the back of the seat. After the close call he had with Damon, he really needed a drink. Especially, since he assumed that by now, Sam was very much aware of the supernatural situation of Mystic Falls. Not to mention, he was bound to get an earful from him and Sheila about running off after a homicidal vampire, guns, stakes, and machetes blazing. So now he's got to try and stave off that meeting for as long as possible, while also coming up with a plan to keep Sam safe from the aforementioned maniacal vampire. That didn't even cover the situation of the new mystery killer that murdered that college girl down at Whitmore, which Dean now definitely had to look into to see if Damon was telling the truth. 

Speaking of things that Damon mentioned in their little chat earlier, he also had to find a way to keep the curse at bay... that is if he wanted to stay human. With thoughts of the curse passing through his mind, Dean slowly rolled up the left sleeve of his shirt and gazed upon the tattoo he bore on his wrist. The _Notam Bellatores._

Notam-Bellatores

Well, half of it anyway. The other half will come when he completes the Transition.

If he completes it.

Well, all that aside, Dean honestly needed a break from all the supernatural chaos going on in his life. He was so deep in thought that when he heard somebody knocking against his window to get his attention, he jumped out of his skin. He looked out of the window and saw Stefan giving him a queer look. "Son of a bitch!" Dean said, regaining his composure.

After waving to his friends, the hunter motioned for them to step back as he opened the door to the Impala and got out of the car. "Sup, guys," Dean breathed. "Hey, man," Stefan replied, but then he furrowed his brow when he saw Dean still massaging his tattooed wrist. "Are you okay?" "Huh? Oh, yeah, definitely," Dean brushed off. Nevertheless, Stefan frowned at him in disbelief. 

"Well, were you just about to leave?" Elena inquired. Dean shook his head. "I was about to head in for a drink," he answered. "Water or Whiskey?" Stefan asked. Dean gave him a pointed look and said, "After the crazy night I've had I'm leaning more towards the latter, but I also know I gotta drive home so..." 

"How about you join us inside, come say "hi" to the others?" Elena offered. "Yeah, sure," Dean replied, giving a small smile. 

* * *

"Has Elena said anything about me?" Matt questioned. "Again, why don't you just call her?" Bonnie countered. "I feel weird calling her. She broke up with me," he argued. "Plus, I can't exactly ask my ex-girlfriend if she's hooking up with my best friend without coming off as jealous." Bonnie nodded in understanding. "I get that, but..." "But what?" He implored. "But you can't learn the truth if you keep hiding from it," Bonnie concluded. "Just give her time, Matt; give both of them time." 

Just then, Dean, Elena, and Stefan walked into the grill, which drew their friends' attention. Elena appeared to be laughing at something Dean had said, while Stefan looked like he was trying his hardest not to smile at his friend's antics.

Just off the way they interacted, Stefan and Elena came across as they got along pretty well. If one had been on the outside looking in at them with no prior knowledge of their lives, then that person would think Stefan and Elena had been friends for years. And yet, they'd only met a few times today.

However, that did not even begin to compare to the way Dean looked at her when she smiled at his jokes or how her cheeks reddened when his arm casually, AND TOTALLY PLATONICALLY, went around her shoulders. Now with them, you could definitely tell that something was going on between them. All in all, Elena seemed to be really happy with the two boys, and that just went to further Matt's own suspicions and sour his mood.

"Just give them time, huh?" Matt snarked, looking at Bonnie who gave him a helpless shrug.


	13. Friendly Meetings, Part II

Matt stood up abruptly and started heading over to where the trio was standing and almost immediately, Bonnie felt a sense of dread wash over her. "Hey," he said, stretching out his hand towards Stefan, "I'm Matt. Nice to meet you." "Hi. Stefan.," the vampire returned. Matt gave him a half-smile before looking over at Elena and Dean and noticing how Dean's arm was still around her, causing him to glare at Dean with suspicion. Dean clenched his jaw and furrowed his brow challengingly. "See you tomorrow, Matt?" he stated pointedly. Stefan, looking between the two jocks, suddenly realized what was, or rather what Dean would claim "wasn't", happening. Matt let out a quiet scoff and said, "Yeah, sure."

* * *

Later that evening when Dean, Elena, and Stefan had joined Bonnie and Caroline at the table, the other two girls grilled Stefan with multiple questions as they tried to get to know him. "So, you were born in Mystic Falls?" Caroline asked. "Mm-hmm. And, I moved when I was still young," Stefan answered back. "Parents?" Bonnie inquired. As soon as the words left her mouth, it immediately got quieter around the table. "Actually, my parents passed away," he said, slightly turning to glance at Dean and then Elena. "I'm sorry," Elena consoled. He nodded graciously and then listened, as she continued to ask if he had any siblings, making Dean noticeably tense up. Bonnie gave Dean a curious look. After all, what reason would Dean have to be tense from the mention of Stefan's family? "Uh, not any that I speak to," Stefan announced, drawing everyone's focus back in. "I live with my uncle." Before they could be engulfed in silence again, Bonnie chimed into the rescue. "So tell me, how do you know our flannel-wearing country boy here?" 

"For the love of-- I don't wear that much flannel!" Dean squawked indignantly.

"Dean, that is the same exact flannel around your waist from when we first met," Stefan pointed out.

"No, it's not!" Dean argued. "I didn't even own this flannel two and a half years ago." 

"Yes, you did," Stefan countered with a smile. 

As they bickered, Elena was given pause to think about what they said. "Hold on. you guys met two years ago?" she asked. "Yeah, uh, we met over Christmas break when I went to go see Bobby in Sioux Falls," Dean replied hesitantly. Caroline perked up in intrigue. "So you've known Stefan for two years and we're just hearing about this now?" the blonde interrogated.

"I'm with Caroline on this," Bonnie agreed.

"Me too," Elena glared accusingly.

"Oh, yeah, sure, make me the bad guy," Dean griped. "You know, not everyone I'm friends with has to be your friend. I already have to fight you harpies off whenever Lee comes in town to visit, can I please have one friend to myself?" The girls gaped at Dean in mock offense and scoffed. "Harpies?!" Caroline raised her voice. As if knowing how badly he screwed up, Dean propped his head up on his elbow and pinched the bridge of his nose. "What he means is that I'm a typical lone wolf who likes his privacy," Stefan swooped in. "I asked him not to say anything because I'm not usually so... inviting."

"There, you see?" Dean called out. "Not my fault."

"Whatever! So, Stefan, if you're new here, then you don't know about the party tomorrow," Caroline changed the subject eagerly. Stefan gave everyone a questioning look. "It's just this back to school thing at the falls," Bonnie explained. "Don't stress too much about it, Stef. I went, like once or twice and then stopped. It's nothing major," Dean informed. "Why'd you stop going?" Stefan asked. Dean shrugged and took a sip of his coke through the straw. "It just wasn't my scene anymore," Dean responded. "And by that, he means he was too cool to slum it with us low lives anymore," Caroline quipped jokingly. 

Dean rolled his eyes at Caroline but said nothing, as his mind wandered off into the nether reaches of his imagination. "Hey, don't guilt-trip the guy," Bonnie said defensively. "With Grams being at Whitmore most of the time, he's got to look after his brother practically all by himself."

As the other four continued to talk about going to the party, Dean's mind drifted off and memories of his most recent encounter with Damon flooded his thoughts. Internally, he contemplated whether or not he should tell Stefan about it, but he ultimately decided that he wasn't going to. Mostly due to the fact that he didn't want Stefan to feel burdened by the knowledge of Damon's presence and also because he didn't want Stefan to have to choose between his brother and the town if Damon continued to draw attention to himself. Furthermore, the words the older vampire had spoken to the hunter echoed in his mind about how that other girl's death hadn't been Damon's fault. Of course, Dean wasn't inclined to believe that, but then he remembered what Damon said about how Stefan wasn't as innocent as he claimed. And even though he already assumed as much about the younger Salvatore, the part of himself that still trusted Damon above all others, the part of himself that's caught somewhere between mortal human and immortal hunter, can't help but feel distrustful of Stefan. 

And that part of him made Dean sick.

It was all Dean could do to keep his stomach from erupting at the thought of how part of him still cared for that sadistic son of a bitch. He had been so enraptured with the two warring voices in his head that he barely registered when Elena called out his name.

"Huh?" he said dumbly. 

"I asked if you would consider going to the party this year?" she queried. Dean gave her a tentative look, "I dunno." "Oh, come on, Dean, you missed it for three years now and this year, you're graduating," Caroline grumbled. "Don't you wanna be able to go to your last high school Back-to-School party with all your friends?" Dean looked around at all his friends sitting next to and across from him and gave a wry smile.

"Maybe I could show my face if Sam decides to go, too," he sighed. 

Elena's mood brightened at Dean's response, though, she was completely unaware of the knowing looks she was getting from Bonnie, Caroline, and Stefan.


	14. Stefan II

**September 9th, 2009**

**10:00 PM**

**Stefan's POV**

* * *

Later that evening when I got back from the grill, I was changing out of my street clothes into something more comfortable while thinking over all the things I observed about Dean and his friends. Aside from Bonnie's clear protectiveness of her friends and Caroline's desperation to jump my bones, the one thing that really stuck out to me was how Elena seemed to really gravitate to Dean. It would have been very peculiar if I didn't already know that Dean was her only lifeline after her parents died. Still, it seemed like there was more to it than that. Especially, if the way Matt acted earlier to them being close together was anything to go by. 

Who knows, maybe I'm reading too much into it, but if not, then she may not want to start a relationship with someone that isn't Dean Winchester. If that is the case, then I won't get in the middle of that. Hell, from the way Dean described her current situation and his obvious-- at least to me, I can't speak for everyone else-- feelings for Elena, I would openly encourage them to be together and be content to just be Elena's friend if that's what she wanted. All I want is to get to know her no matter which way that is. 

Just then, I heard footsteps coming from down the hall. Zach. "You promised!" he yelled, entering my room. I turned around to face him and before I could ask him what the problem was, he rambled that another news report came in about the missing couple, saying that they had been found dead at the edge of the forest going down Highway 90. 

I furrowed my brow in concern. "This was an animal attack," I said, though a voice in my head that sounded a lot like Dean shouted to the contrary. Zach seemed to think so too. "Don't give me that," he snapped. "I know the game. You tear them up enough, they always suspect an animal attack. You said you had it under control."

"I do!"

"Please, Uncle Stefan," he begged. "Mystic Falls is a different place now. It's been quiet for years, but there are still people who remember." I glared at my nephew darkly. "And let me guess? Me being here is just going to stir things up," I snarked rhetorically. "Well, you don't have to worry, okay? Dean is already looking into the situation and he'll give me a heads up if you-know-who shows up." 

"Are you sure about that?" Zach questioned.

"Excuse me?" I quirked an eyebrow.

"Well, I'm just saying how do you know you can fully trust Dean Winchester? I mean, if what you told me about their shared past is true, then maybe Dean might still be on his side," Zach exhaled. "He's not! Damon is a supernatural killer, Dean is the closest thing to a supernatural cop there is," I gritted out. "There's no way that Dean would ever side with him after everything that's happened. Plus, he doesn't have any memory of his... time with Damon." "Be that as it may, Dean Winchester still poses a very serious threat," Zach scoffed. "Do you know how reckless those Winchester hunters are? I've heard stories about what happens to people who get mixed up with them; it never ends well." I rolled my eyes haughtily. "I know the stories, too, and I still trust Dean with my life," I stated. "What if he's lying to you," Zach argued, "gaining your trust so that you can let your guard down and he can drive a stake through your heart; both your hearts?" 

"If he wanted to kill either one of us, he would've done it by now," I admitted, pausing as I slowly realized that I halfway proved Zach's earlier point about Dean and Damon. Maybe there were some lingering feelings and emotions between them. If so, then I prayed that Dean would not let his emotions towards my brother cloud his judgment. 

A deep silence penetrated the room and I let out a deep sigh, taking a step closer to my nephew. "Listen, I don't want to stir up trouble, it's not my intention."

"Then what is?" he asked. "Why did you come back? After all this time, why now?"

"I don't have to explain myself to you." 

"I know that you can't change what you are," he started. "But you don't belong here anymore." 

"Oh, really, and where do I belong?" I questioned. 

"I can't tell you what to do, but coming home was a mistake," he replied. And with that, he walked away leaving me to ponder his words. As soon as he was gone, I went over to my wardrobe closet and opened its doors wide, searching for a specific journal in the sea of diaries from multiple decades worth of history and internal struggle. Once I found it, I flipped through it's old pages until I found the old picture I had of my first love Katherine, who bore a striking resemblance to the one and only Elena Gilbert. That's when I remembered the conversation that Dean and I had this past summer. 

* * *

_~flashback~_

I met up with him at a diner in small town Wisconsin after he had just cleaned out a nest of Evarian vampires and it was then that I finally told him the truth about Katherine. _"Look, man, I've been in the game for as long as I can remember, and I've seen just about everything there is to see. This thing with Katherine and Elena is on another level."_ He had said. _"I know, it's crazy, but I had to tell you, before I came back to Mystic Falls,"_ I replied. _"It ain't just crazy, man, it's messed up,"_ Dean shot back. _"But I am glad you told me before you came back. Otherwise, I would've had to put a couple wooden bullets in you if I found out from someone else."_ I nodded solemnly, before saying, _"You know, I would never hurt her, right?"_ _"I know you wouldn't, but her parents just died and I want her to stay out of this life._ _So, if you come home, make sure it's for the right reasons and not the selfish ones, got it?"_ Dean replied. 

I nodded in affirmation and then Dean shot me a half-smile that lacked its usual mirth, which wasn't surprising after hearing the bombshell I just dropped on him. _"Come on, let's get some grub and get the hell out of here,"_ he said. _"We'll talk about the rest of this on the way back to Sioux Falls."_

_~end of flashback~_

* * *

I blinked and came back to reality, delicately placing the photo on my desk. 

Maybe they were both right.

Maybe coming back was a mistake.


	15. Elena III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elena's feelings for Dean deepen. The boys come to her defense.

_Dear Diary,_

_I'm honestly terrified for the day to begin. Last night, I got Dean to agree to come to the party tonight which I consider to be a "win". I have also decided that today is the day; the day I tell him how I feel. What's scaring me is that he might not feel the same way. And if he doesn't, then that'll completely ruin our friendship. I don't know what I'd do if that happened. I_ _mean, yeah, I have my girls Caroline and Bonnie, but Dean is different._

_Just like how Caroline and Bonnie understand me each in a different way, Dean and I share a different kind of connection. It was a connection that was built on loss and tragedy. And from that pain, a bond was forged. Even if he doesn't think of me in the way I think of him, I still want him to be part of my life; no matter what capacity that's in._

Later that morning, Dean and I were riding in his car in comfortable silence, as he drove us to school. It was just me and him today since Sam and Jeremy ride the bus on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Bonnie hitched a car ride with Caroline today as well. And with how busy the day was sure to be, this might be my only chance to tell him the truth without other people cutting in. I let out a breath I hadn't known I was holding and began to speak.

"So," I said awkwardly, "you still going to the party?"

Wow. Really?

He shot me a quick glance before returning his focus to the road. "You ask, I come. I'm easy like that," Dean retorted. I bit back a grin and rolled my eyes at him. "I'm serious!" I nudged him gently. "You said you were only going because Sam wanted to go." "Yeah, so?" Dean asked. "So, Sam said he wasn't going anymore and that he was going to stay home and study for an upcoming test he has in Mr. Tanner's class," I continued. "And so what, you think I'm gonna bail on you and leave you to avoid Matt, fend off Caroline, and keep Vicki Donovan away from Jeremy all by yourself?" Dean listed off.

The Impala came to a stop at a street light and Dean turned to face me. "C'mon, Lena, you know that I always try to keep my promises," he said. "If I say I'm goin' to this party, then I'm goin'. Besides, it wouldn't be terrible to hang out more with my favorite _Dream_ _Girl_." I looked away at my window to hide the blush creeping across my face. The car started moving again, signifying that the light had changed and I finally chased away the blush threatening to burn off my cheeks.

"I'd thought Effie was your favorite _Dream Girl_ _,_ " I joked. "She is, but you're a close second," he winked."Well, we can always hang out more outside of studying and parties. It's been a while since we've hung with just the two of us," I responded casually. He snorted, "That's because the last time we did, Bonnie and Caroline seemed convinced that we were dating."

I gave him a questioning look. "And that's a bad thing?" All of a sudden, it was like an old record had come to a screeching halt, and just like that, the light-hearted atmosphere was gone in an instant. I winced at my idiocy and chanced a look in his direction. However, when I tried to gauge his reaction, he looked neither upset nor awkward, nor confused. In fact, I couldn't tell anything about his unreadable expression. "Well, there's nothing bad about them thinking we're dating, it's just not the correct assumption," Dean replied carefully. "I didn't mean anything by it if that's what you think."

"Oh, no, no, no, no, I get it," I backtracked. "I totally understand." Dean gave me a soft smile and turned his attention back to the road. Well, it was now or never! Might as well dive in headfirst. "So, would you date me," I asked slowly, "I mean, hypothetically, and if I were the last person on planet Earth?" I heard him let a light chuckle, which meant he was nervous.

"You know what, nevermind," I conceded. "You don't have to answer that." I looked down at my lap in embarrassment and twiddled my thumbs anxiously. "I might have dated you," Dean admitted. This nearly made me lurch forward in my seat in surprise. I whipped my head harshly in Dean's direction and balked at him. All he did was wink at me in response to my reaction. I scoffed and rolled my eyes in irritation. But a part of me still couldn't let go of what he said. Was there some truth to what he said?

* * *

Later that morning in history, Mr. Tanner was teaching us some local history about Mystic Falls during the Civil War. "The Battle of Willow Creek took place right at the end of the war and in our own backyard," Mr. Tanner explained. I sat dazed in my seat still pondering the conversation Dean and I had earlier in the Impala, only half-listening to Mr. Tanner. So when he suddenly called on me to answer a question, all I could do was stare open-mouthed as I scrambled to come up with an answer. Finally, I just said, "I'm sorry, I don't know."

"I willing to be lenient last year for obvious reasons, Elena, but the excuses ended with summer break," he jabbed. "Jesus Christ, Tanner, she doesn't know the answer," Dean jumped in protectively. A series of murmurs echoed from the students as Mr. Tanner glowered down at Dean.

"Excuse me, Mr. Winchester, can you repeat that?" Tanner said. Dean tilted his head upward, his classic grin dancing over his lips, and said, "There were 346 casualties during the Battle of Willow Creek, Mr. Tanner." "Unless you're counting local casualties," Stefan added. Dean and Stefan shared a look before turning back to the teacher. Mr. Tanner had apparently caught the exchange and clenched his jaw tightly. 

"Well, both of you are correct," he griped. "And you are?"

"Stefan Salvatore, sir."

"Salvatore?" Tanner said curiously. "Any relation to the original Salvatore family here in Mystic Falls?"

"Distant."

"Well, very good. Except for the fact that there were no civilian casualties in this battle," Tanner corrected briskly. "Actually, sir, Stefan is right and there were 27 casualties," Dean grinned impishly at his friend, "isn't that right, Stef?" The Salvatore descendant huffed lightly but seemed to play into whatever game Dean was currently playing. "Yeah, Dean. The, uh, Confederate soldiers fired on a church, they believed it was housing weapons. They were wrong," Stefan replied.

Mr. Tanner was seething inside, although, he put up a good front. It was truly a sight for sore eyes and I honestly felt my heart flutter at how Dean and Stefan were sticking up for me. "You know, the Founders Archives are stored in Civil Hall if you would like to brush up on your facts," Stefan retorted boldly. Dean glanced back at Tanner with a shit-eating grin plastered across his face and it took everything in me not to laugh out loud. "You heard the man, Mr. T," Dean announced. "Happy fact-checking."

Then Dean looked back over to me and I tried to put on my best stern look. Unfortunately, my smile kept breaking through and all I did was shake my head. I turned my eyes to Stefan and mouthed the words "thank you," before looking back down at my desk.

I guess knights in shining armor do exist.


	16. Late Night Parties, Part I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Back-To-School party is underway, but will something happen to change the festive atmosphere?

That night, the Falls were buzzing with activity as the entire student body of Mystic Falls High danced and drank and made merry. Elena was dressed in a sheer magenta spaghetti strap mid-riff blouse, blue jeans, and a black bomber jacket that was way too big for her.

Well, technically, it was Dean's bomber jacket, but he left it at her place one night when they were studying for a Math exam so she kind of kept it. Plus, it was cool out at the Falls, so she figured she might as well wear something warm. And if Dean just so happened to think she looked sexy wearing his jacket, then, of course, that was a bonus.

Just then Bonnie and Caroline approached her smiling and laughing and she drew them both into a tight hug. "Whoa, Elena, you look amazing," Caroline complimented. "Thank you, Caroline," Elena said. "Yeah, you look hot!" Bonnie chimed in. "Although, the bomber jacket seems a bit big on you."

"Oh, it's not mine, it's Dean's," Elena answered back. This caused the two girls to give Elena a suspicious look of interest. "Oh, really?" Caroline teased. "And where is our country rockstar?" Bonnie asked. Elena just shrugged off her friends heckling and grabbed a beer from one of the nearest coolers. "Well, while you two keep an eye out for Dean," Caroline started, "I'm gonna go look for Stefan." And with that, the blonde disappeared into the crowd of partying adolescents.

"Well," Bonnie said expectantly. Elena stared at her friend in confusion. "Well, what?" "Oh, come on, Elena. Insisting the Dean comes to the party, wearing his jacket," Bonnie listed off. "Not to mention, you get flustered every time he smiles at you, and you two were practically joined at the hip this summer until he left to visit his uncle. Even then, you still talked to him on the phone twice a day, every day."

Elena lowered her head flustered. "Was it that obvious?" She mumbled. "To everyone except Dean apparently," Bonnie sighed. "You like him, admit it, Elena." "Okay, so I've had a crush on him since Sophomore year, but I don't want to ruin anything between us," Elena floundered.

"Ruin anything between who?" a voice came out of nowhere. Both girls whirled around so fast and saw none other than Dean himself. The man in question was wearing an open long-sleeve red flannel over a black t-shirt with denim blue jeans and hiker boots. Elena couldn't help but give him a once-over, and that's when she noticed the tattoo on his wrist. But before she could say anything about it, Bonnie loudly announced that she was going to go find something to do then quickly gave Elena a thumbs up and darted off.

"I swear that girl is a mystery to me." Dean laughed at Bonnie's crazy antics and Elena giggled nervously. "So, what were you both talking about earlier?" he asked once things settled down again. They started walking away from the crowd and towards the bridge. "Oh, you know, girl stuff," Elena answered vaguely. "Ah, girl stuff," Dean repeated. "So were you just gossiping about guys or talking about clothes," Dean began. "Shut up!" Elena said, nudging him with her elbow. "Well, c'mon, tell me what you were talking about," Dean pried. "Was it about me, it was about me, wasn't it?"

Elena paused once they got to the bridge and looked up at Dean. They were only a few feet apart from each other and Elena struggled to maintain a steady breathing rate. "Yeah," she replied softly. "Well, I hope it was all good things," Dean japed. "No, no, it was all good," she huffed airily. "Trust me." Dean leaned back against the railing leisurely and quirked his lips upward.

"Actually, there was something I wanted to tell you before," she started. However, at that moment, Dean's phone rang and he pulled it out of his jacket pocket to answer. "Hello?" Elena groaned in exasperation as she slumped against the rail. Could she ever just catch a break? "Sam, what the hell is wrong with you?" Dean swore. "Son of a bitch! Tell me where you are!" This made Elena perk up with piqued interest. "Listen to me, Sammy, don't do it," Dean implored. "Just stay there, I'll be there as soon as I can." Of course, it was then that the line went dead and Dean lost the connection. "Sam? Sam!" Then, he pocketed the phone and let out a frustrated growl. "Shit!"

"What is it?"

"Nothing, just some shit with Sammy came up."

"Well, is everything okay? Does he need help?" Elena persisted. "No, Elena, it's nothing!" the young Hunter snapped. Elena jumped back from him in shock. She inhaled sharply when she saw something like red hot energy surge right into his eyes making the usually green irises look just a bit brighter than normal. "Dean, your eyes," she started.

This got Dean to snap out of his haze long enough to turn his head away. The sound of air filling his lungs was audible enough to be heard by Elena, who continued to gaze at him with concern. As the burning fire slowly started to burn out in his heart and mind, the green of his eyes calmly went back to normal. Chancing a look back to his friend, Dean swallowed thickly and cleared his throat to say, "I'm sorry for yelling at you, I was frustrated. But I do have to go now."

"Wait, but--"

"I call you later, okay?"

"No, stop," she said, grabbing his arm roughly as he tried to escape. "I said, stop! What is going on?" Dean halted his steps. "I don't have time for this, Lena." "Then make time!" Elena shot back. From a distance, Matt, Caroline, and Bonnie were watching them argue. At least they assumed they were arguing based on the looks on their faces.

"Oh, boy," Bonnie muttered. "I don't think I've ever seen them argue before," Caroline chimed in. Matt just continued to watch the argument unfold before his eyes in contemplative silence. "What do you think they're arguing about?" Caroline asked. Bonnie cringed awkwardly. "I may have an inkling, but I hope to God I'm wrong," she breathed.

"Elena likes him, doesn't she?" Matt said suddenly. Caroline squawked indignantly, fixing her gaze to her two friends up on the bridge. "Seriously? How come nobody told me this?" "Up until now, I only suspected it," Bonnie replied quickly. "Yeah, well then, what changed?" Matt snapped. "Did she tell you?" Bonnie gave her friend a look of sympathy and lowered her head.

"Hey, guys, what's going on?" Stefan said behind them.

* * *

Back on the bridge, Elena and Dean continued to argue about the secret Dean was keeping from her. "Why are you shutting me out?" she raised her voice. "It's not your problem," he shot back. "Well, apparently it's Sam's problem that you're trying to fix," she retorted snidely. Dean spluttered to come up with a retort but could find none. Then he let out a groan of frustration and stormed off back the way they arrived.

As he walked off, Stefan approached his friend and asked what was going on. In response, Dean said, "Dealing with your family's problems." Then, Dean shrugged past him and the rest of his friends and ran off in the direction of the forest, not caring about the odd looks he was getting from them. It didn't matter.

None of it did.

If what Sam told him over the phone was true, then Dean would have a serious problem on his hands. At the rate Damon was dropping bodies, it wouldn't be long before the _others_ discovered what was going on. He needed to find a way to stop Damon that didn't involve killing him and fast. Otherwise, they would all be screwed.

With that in mind, he rushed off to go and find Sam... And maybe burn a corpse along the way.


	17. Sam II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam unearths something horrible.

<https://youtu.be/PVn6b9QQZeM>

This is bad! Like this is _really_ bad! I know that Dean didn't want me to get involved with this whole mess with Damon Salvatore, but I couldn't just sit back and do nothing as Damon rolled over Mystic Falls.

Now unlike Dean, I'm not going to go off half-cocked in search of a fight. Of course, I'm also not going to let him do whatever the hell he wants either. So when Dean left to go to the party, I might have lied and told him I was staying home so I could sneak out to the woods by the Falls to keep an eye out for anything suspicious.

And while I was wandering through the woods, I came across dead victim number four. I crouched down and carefully examined the body and checked for any sign of a pulse, but there was none. Then, I gently moved the girl's head to the side and grimaced the two bloody fang marks decorating her neck.

"Damn it!" I swore.

I quickly looked around and checked to see if anyone was watching me, before pulling my phone out of my pocket and calling Dean's number. I rose to my full height and tapped my foot on the forest floor anxiously as the phone rang in my ear. "Come on, bro, pick up," I pleaded.

 _"Hello?"_ came Dean's voice through the phone. "Dean, we have an issue. I found another body in the forest near the Falls," I explained hurriedly. _"Sam, what the hell is wrong with you?"_ Dean chided. I rolled my eyes at my brother's overprotective attitude. All of a sudden, I was at full-awareness once I heard a twig snap from a distance away from myself and the body.

"Dean, I think someone is out here," I whispered into the phone. I winced as he swore loudly in my ear demanding that I tell him where I was. Then, I heard a faint scream coming from the same direction that I heard the twig snap. "Dean, someone's in trouble I've gotta go," I said.

"Listen to me, Sammy, don't do it. Just stay there, I'll--" I hung up and pocket the phone before he could get the rest of his sentence out. Then, I grabbed a wooden stake out of my the inside of my jacket and darted off into the woods to find the latest victim on Damon's kill list.

Honestly, can't I just have a normal first week of high school like everyone else?

  
To Be Continued...

.....


	18. Late Night Parties, Part II

Elena leaned over the railing fuming after what occurred between her and Dean. She kept trying to calm herself down, but she still couldn't get over the argument they had only moments ago. _What was his problem?_ she thought. _What was he hiding?_

They never kept secrets from each other in the two and a half years that she's known him. Needless to say, Elena was now curious as to what Dean was keeping from her. She had half a mind to follow after him to see what he was up to. "Hey, Elena," a voice said, taking her out of her revelry. She turned her head to the side and saw Stefan tentatively walking towards her.

She let out an airy breath and smiled tiredly. "Hi," she exhaled, running a hand through her dark brown hair. "How much of that did you hear?" "I was actually going to ask you what you had been talking about," Stefan replied. Elena didn't know whether she was relieved or saddened that Stefan hadn't heard what went down between her and Dean.

Unbeknown to her, Stefan _had_ heard the whole thing, but he wanted her to tell her what was going on. Laying the foundations for a relationship of any kind had to start somewhere, right? He finally made his way up to her and gestured that he was primed and willing to listen if she was willing to talk. "If it's not too forward, can I ask what you're upset about?" He asked. "Oh, uh, Dean is just acting weird," Elena brushed off flagrantly. "You know, just friends arguing from time to time. It's nothing."

Stefan furrowed his brow. "Is it?" She wavered in her cool expression, "Yes." He blinked nonchalantly. "Maybe," she corrected. Stefan gave her a knowing stare and she slumped her shoulders in defeat. "Okay, okay, so he might be lying to me about something," she admitted. The vampire's knowing look shifted into one of intrigue. "Lying to you about what?" He inquired. 

"That's what I was trying to figure out," Elena explained. "His brother Sam called and got him worked up over something, and then I tried to ask him what was wrong and he shut me down." Stefan nodded his head in understanding and said, "Then you continued to ask and he blew up at you, I'm assuming?" Elena waved her hand in affirmation.

Stefan hummed to himself contemplatively. "Can I offer a piece of advice about getting Dean to open up?" Elena gave him a semi-pitiful look. "Well, when I met Dean, he was rigid, cold, and he had just lost his dad," Stefan stated. "On top of that, he always felt like it was his god-given mission to take care of his brother and look after his family." "Where exactly are you going with this?" Elena questioned.

Stefan chuckled lightly. "What I'm saying is that he's been conditioned from a very young age to be the "man of the house," so to speak, and he always thinks he has to take care of everyone every day for the rest of his life with no help from anyone," he continued. "This makes him a very responsible and dependable person. Contrarily, this also makes him more closed off to others and his emotions because he thinks it will distract him from doing what he feels has to be done to protect the people he cares about.

"My advice: try to be patient with him; he didn't have the easiest childhood and he is the most emotionally stunted person, besides my brother, I have _ever_ met." That last comment made Elena laugh and she took what Stefan said to heart.

"Thanks, Stefan."

"Anytime," he replied. "Was there anything else about Dean that was bothering you?"

"Well, not about him, per se, but it involves him," Elena squeaked awkwardly. "But it's totally stupid and you'll probably think it's cliché." "No, no, no, tell me. I promise I won't laugh or make fun of you," Stefan smiled reassuringly. "I don't know. I mean, you're his friend and you will probably feel awkward about knowing this, and I don't want to put you in the middle of it," she blubbered.

"Elena, it's okay."

Taking a deep breath and then letting it out, Elena then told Stefan about her crush on Dean. No, crush wasn't the right word. Not anymore. He was more than that to her now. Ever since her parents died, he had been the only light at the end of a dark tunnel she never thought she would find her way out of; a tunnel she's still unsure she'll find her way out of. He was a constant source of laughter for her whenever she was having a bad day. He was that shoulder she cried on when she felt like she couldn't take it anymore.

It was like Stefan said earlier. Dean was that person she had come to depend on without even realizing it. And now that she has, she can't imagine him not being there for her whenever she needs it.

"Well, it sounds to me like you truly love him," Stefan said. She flushed brightly and tucked her hair behind her ear. "So, have you told him yet?" he inquired impishly. "I tried to, but then he got that phone call from Sam and... Well..." She trailed off.

"Ah. Well, cheer up. I'm sure you'll get another chance," he offered hopefully. Elena sucked in a breath. "I'm not so sure the universe wants me to," she countered. "I've been trying to tell him since the last week of summer and somehow, I always get interrupted or something pops up randomly that either of us has to take care of."

"Well, don't give up just yet."

Elena smiled and nodded. "Well, anyway, that was all of the Dean troubles I have. Let's get on with talking about you," she changed the subject. "You know, you're the talk of the town." "I am?" Stefan followed her lead. "Yeah. You are the mysterious new guy," she said teasingly. "Well, you have the mysterious thing going, too," he compared. "Twinged in sadness." Elena looked somewhat puzzled by his words. "What makes you think I'm sad?"

"Well, we did me in a graveyard," Stefan replied. The change in the mood was nearly as apparent as the freckles on Dean's face. "Right," Elena drawled, searching for a way out of that dreary line of conversation. "Well, no, technically we met in the men's room." They both shared an awkward laugh, before falling into a brief silence. "You don't wanna know," she said. "It's not exactly party chit-chat."

"Well, I've never been good at, uh, chit-chat," Stefan responded gently. "And I think we've established that I'm a very good listener."

"Last spring... My parents' car drove off a bridge and into the lake. I was in the back seat and I survived, but they didn't," Elena stated. "That's my story." Stefan hung back after she said that making Elena turn back curiously. "You won't be said forever, Elena," he consoled. She quirked up her lips in acknowledgment.

* * *

Dean ran through the thicket calling out for Sam, as his mind frantically raced with all the many horrible outcomes of how he would find his brother running through his head. It was these thoughts that made him run faster than what was normal for a regular human.

In the back of his mind, his thoughts drifted back towards Elena and how worried she'd been. As per usual, whenever recent thoughts of Elena crept into his mind, he would always veer off to thinking about her infectious laugh that made him laugh or the way her eyes would light up when she's truly happy. Or how her smile could simultaneously melt the wall of ice he had built around his heart.

Or-- whoa, whoa! What was he thinking? Now was not the time to be daydreaming about a girl he can never have. Right now, he needed to help his brother and that's all he needs to focus on.

"Sam!" He yelled hoarsely. "Sammy!" After running through the woods for what seemed like forever, the elder Winchester stumbled and came to a stop and collapsed against a nearby tree panting breathlessly. Once he was able to regain his breath, a strong scent of blood wafted into his nostrils. He gagged and pinched his nose, as he attempted to fan the odor away.

_Fucking Hunter Sense!_ Dean swore mentally. And he was right. The young hunter was detecting the scent of spilled blood from two different directions. One of them smelled older, staler, kind of rotten like the fourth victim Sam said he found. However, the other scent smelled fresh.

Very fresh.

Now Dean found himself at an impasse. Would he follow his Hunter instincts and get rid of victim number four on Damon's hit list? Or would he follow his brotherly instincts and search for Sam?

Once again, his family came before duty, and Dean bolted off in the direction where he smelled the fresh blood. And the entire way there, Dean hoped, no prayed that it wasn't Sam's body he found when he finally arrived.

* * *

After talking about her parents' deaths, they both agreed to converse about more upbeat topics. "I like Bonnie, she seems like a good friend," Stefan commented. "Best friend in the world," Elena chimed. "And Matt, he seems to not be able to take his eyes off you," Stefan remarked casually. "Matt's that friend since childhood that you start dating because you owe it to yourself to try," she started.

"And then?" Stefan questioned. This caused Elena to shrug. "And then my parents died, and everything changes." She continued to say that she and Matt never had that spark that made their relationship feel passionate. Stefan could understand that and continued to listen to what she had to say.

In his effort to herd her words, he struggled to keep his now palpable hunger from erupting and expose him for what he really was. However, it was all for naught as purple veins became visible under his eyes and the sclera of them became bloodshot.

"Hey, are you okay? Your eyes look kind of bloodshot?" Elena pointed out. Stefan blinked and looked away from her immediately. "Oh, yeah," Stefan lied. "I must have gotten something in my eyes. Um, do you want another drink?" Quickly, he grabbed her cup from the rail before she had a chance to object and walked back in the opposite direction.

She watched as he left and immediately remembered when Dean's eyes glowed red with fire only ten minutes ago when she had spoken to him. One time is a happy accident, the second time is a coincidence, but now both of them are acting sketchy and avoiding her. Something weird was going and maybe she was just a little bit over it.

* * *

Dean sped through the thicket with great intensity, shouting Sam's name as he went. Then, as though his prayers had finally been answered, Dean heard a familiar voice call out his name.

"Sammy!" Dean yelled.

"Dean, over here!" Sam called. A few seconds later, Dean spotted Sam on his knees leaning over a girl's body, pressing his hands into her chest like he was giving her CPR. Except it wasn't just any girl's body. It was Vicki Donovan.

"You have got to be shitting me!"

He hurried over to his brother and saw him try to staunch the bleeding from her neck with his flannel as he continued to try and resuscitate her. "Hey, hey, let me try," Dean nudged his brother out of the way. "What about me?" Sam asked. "Get Matt and the others and call the cops!" Dean said, rolling up his sleeves and pressing both his hands down on her chest.

"But what about?" Sam began.

"We'll get rid of the other girl's body once the area is clear now go!" Dean ordered.

* * *

Jeremy was trudging through the woods and Elena was following after him and they were both engulfed in a heated argument. "Guys!" They heard someone yell. They both instantly turned to see Sam running right for them, his hands covered in blood. "Sam? What are you doing here, I thought--" "No time to explain? Dean... in woods... Found Vicki... Animal attack... Injured... Bleeding... Get Matt! Call sheriff!" Sam said in between breaths.

Elena's heart dropped. "Oh, my God, where's Dean?" She asked panicked. Sam pointed in the general direction behind him and Elena sprinted off in search of Dean, hoping that he was okay. Jeremy tried to run off, too, but Sam told him they needed to get Matt and call the police. And after much convincing, Jeremy reluctantly agreed and followed Sam back to the party.

Meanwhile, in the woods, Elena tripped and stumbled over roots and branches shouting Dean's name desperately. "Dean, where are you?" she cried. "Elena?" Dean asked, suddenly appearing from the underbrush with an unconscious Vicki in his arms. Elena gasped and jumped back, however, after realizing it was Dean she felt herself calm down immensely. As she took in the sight of Vicki unconscious, but still very much alive and Dean with his shirt tinged red from the blood leaking onto it she covered her mouth in horror.

"Oh, God, is she?" she hated to even ask. "No, I was able to restart her heart, but we need to get out of here, like, now!" Dean quickly answered. And with that, they rushed out of the forest.


	19. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stefan is forced to face a painstaking realization. Sam and Dean work their magic.
> 
> On this fateful night, Mystic Falls will change forever.

"Somebody help!" Elena shouted as they emerged from the woods with Vicki in tow.

"Vicki?" Matt exclaimed. "Vicki, what the hell?" Sam and Jeremy showed up at that moment to clear off a table, as Dean gently laid her on the surface of it. "What happened to her?" Matt yelled. "Sam and Dean found her in the woods," Elena said quickly. "She was attacked by some kind of animal."

"Sam, get me water, a flashlight, some towels, and a beer now," Dean ordered. "On it!" his brother chimed, before rushing off. "Jeremy, did you call 911?" Dean barked. "Yeah, they'll be here in fifteen minutes," Jeremy replied. "Okay, Matt, Elena, I need you both to hold down her arms, understood?" Dean sounded. "Sam, where are those damn supplies?!"

"Here, I got them!"

"Bring 'em over, quick."

Sam set the supplies on the table next to Vicki and walked around the side to where Vicki's head was. "Okay, Sammy, remember what I told you?" Dean asked, resulting in Sam nodding in affirmation. "Hold her head steady, while I take this from around her neck." The Winchester brothers gingerly went to work extracting the flannel, being careful not to disturb her neck too rigorously.

Elena and the others then continued to watch as the brothers skillfully treated Vicki's wounds using the materials they had. And Elena being Elena couldn't help but notice how calm they were both acting. It was almost as though they had experienced something like this before. The thought of this not being Dean's first time dealing with something like this had Elena suspended in disbelief. But then she remembered what Stefan had told her earlier that night.

_"He didn't have the easiest childhood."_

But did that truly explain why he was so good at stitching up wounds from animal attacks? Of course, then she remembered all those times when they all went swimming down at the lake, and she saw the faint pink lines of claw scratches or scars strewed all over his torso and back. Were they from animal attacks, too?

She didn't know anything for a fact, but what she did know was that there was more to Dean than he was letting on. And she was now officially hell-bent on finding out.

* * *

Stefan stared at the scene before him in horror, while people murmured and whispered among themselves. Flashes of his first conversation with Dean about the missing couple, later followed by the report of the college girl with her throat ripped out.

Plus, the confirmation from Zach about the couple being torn up by the same type of animal. Adding in the most recent disappearance of a local woman and now Vicki's attack. And then, of course, Dean snapped at him earlier that night about "dealing with his family's problems..."

Wait.

He couldn't mean...

Oh, shit!

And it was at that moment that Stefan was able to connect all the dots and put the pieces together. The century-old vampire backed away from the crowd and made a break for it, but not before Sam and Matt could catch him fleeing the scene of the crime.

He finally got back to the boarding house and bolted upstairs to his room, slamming the door shut behind him. He braced himself against the desk and sucked in sharp breaths as his new reality set in. Why? After all this time, why would he come back to Mystic Falls? Why now?

Out of nowhere, a crow flew into his house and perched itself on of the wooden beams on the ceiling. Stefan's heart plummeted to his gut and he closed his eyes in resignation. Turning around to face the intruder, he came face-to-face with his wicked older brother.

"Damon," he huffed in disappointment.

Damon smirked evilly. "Hello, brother."

  
To Be Continued...

.....


	20. All's Well That Ends Well

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stefan confronts his past and his brother. Multiple truths are brought to light. And some confessions are made.

[Don't Let Me Go](https://youtu.be/IirLPRFyNjM)

"Crow's a bit much, don't you think?" Stefan said finally after standing in silence for far too long. Damon gave him a side glance. "You should see what I can do with the fog," he remarked. "When did you get here?" Stefan interrogated. Damon stopped meddling with the trinkets littering Stefan's desk and gave his brother a resting bitch-face.

"Well, I couldn't miss your first day of school," he snarked. "Your hair is different. I like it." Stefan shook his head in annoyance.

Damon was stalling.

And he knew that Stefan knew he was stalling.

The question is: why?

Well, whatever the reason, he probably wasn't going to find out tonight.

"So, you went to see Dean first, I see," Stefan changed the subject casually. Damon froze dead in his tracks. "Maybe I did," he answered vaguely. "Why did you?" Stefan badgered. Damon clenched his jaw making his already sharp jawline look even sharper. "What's it to you?" Damon countered. "Maybe I just wanted to see if my brother's boyfriend was good enough for him."

"Oh, please. You stopped acting like my brother a long time ago," Stefan scoffed dismissively. "Besides, I think you're confusing which one of us is more inclined to having a boyfriend, Damon." His brother bit his lip and shrugged, "What can I say? I like what I like." Stefan looked unamused by his brother's antics, causing the older Vampire to sigh. "Look, little brother, if you want to know what Dean and I have been up to, then ask him yourself," Damon retorted. "You guys are besties after all."

Now, Stefan was getting aggravated. He expected Damon to get cagey about why he was back in Mystic Falls, but now he has to worry about his brother's perverted interest (whatever it may be) in his best friend. This was starting to shape up to be a shitty homecoming as far as Stefan was concerned.

"It's been fifteen years, Damon," Stefan griped sourly. "Technically, it's only been thirteen, since you contacted me two years ago desperately pleading for my help with Dean," Damon corrected smugly.

"Yes, thank you for that reminder. What are you doing here?" Stefan demanded. "Is it wrong for a 170-year-old vampire to miss his little brother?" Damon asked innocently, though his eyes told a different story. "You hate small towns," Stefan countered. "It's boring, there's nothing for you to do."

Damon clicked his tongue nodded his head in agreement. "True, but I've managed to keep myself busy."

"You know, you left that girl alive tonight," Stefan began, "and you left her where the Winchesters could find her. That was very clumsy of you." Damon's lips quirked up in a mischievous grin. "Was it though? I mean, don't get me wrong, it is a problem... For you." The younger Salvatore shook his head in dismay at his older brother's actions. "Why are you here now?" he inquired.

"I could ask you the same question," Damon contradicted. "However, I'm fairly certain that your answer can be summed up to one little word... Elena."

* * *

The ambulance had just arrived along with animal control and gently placed Vicki on the gurney and loaded her into the back of the ambulance. Matt followed in after her, shutting the door behind him as the truck drove off to the hospital. Dean watched as the ambulance pulled out of the parking lot and barely noticed when Sam came up to stand beside him. "I took care of the other body," he said in a low tone.

"Salted and burned?" Dean asked, not taking his eyes away from where the ambulance was moments ago. "Standard procedure as always," Sam replied. Dean nodded his head. "Good."

"Hey, Dean!" Elena said, making both brothers turn around. "Elena, hey!" Sam stuttered. Dean gave her a half-smile. Without even knowing the full story, Sam instantly got the sense that they needed to talk about something in private and cleared his throat loudly. "I'm just gonna go see if Bonnie and Caroline need help cleaning up," he announced.

Once he was gone Elena approached his right side and stood next to him quietly. "So... Tonight was one hell of a back to school party," she offered awkwardly. Despite how awkward the tension was, he laughed. "Yeah, something tells me we're gonna be telling our grandkids about this someday," he joked wryly. She cracked a small smile and giggled at his sarcasm.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you earlier, Lena," Dean apologized. "I'm just not in a good place right now, and instead of dealing with it like a normal person, I took it out on you." Elena squeezed her lips together and nodded in understanding. "I forgive you," she said. "And I shouldn't have pressed you for answers when you weren't ready to talk. I promise I'll try to be more patient with you." "And I will try not to be so closed off," Dean agreed.

This made Elena smile and she instinctively took his hand in hers. "Well, whatever happens after tonight, I want you to know that I'll be here if you need me." Dean was barely able to keep his emotions from running rampant and at that moment he realized he wanted nothing more than to kiss her. However, Bonnie came in at the last second before he could make his decision and said, "Hey, guys, we're gonna go mainline coffee, wait for news." "I gotta get Sam home, it's getting late," Dean replied. "Yeah, same, Jeremy's had a pretty rough night," Elena chimed in. Bonnie nodded at the two of them, pretending to ignore the sight of their hands entwined together.

"Okay, well, you guys be safe out there, alright?" Bonnie responded. "Yeah, sure. I'll call you both once I get Sam in the house," Dean nodded. He hugged Elena with his free arm and kissed the top of her head, then he hugged Bonnie and walked away from the two girls. But before he got too far away from them, he called back out to Elena and said, "By the way, you look good in that jacket, Gilbert; you can keep it."

Elena stifled a grin and looked away from Dean to keep from letting her smile show. Once Sam and Dean were gone, Bonnie looked back at her best friend and sighed. "Elena, there's no way I'm psychic. I know that. But whatever I saw, or I think I saw, I have this feeling..."

"Bonnie, what?"

"That it's just the beginning."

* * *

"She took my breath away," Damon exhaled. "Elena. She's a dead ringer for Katherine." "Enough, Damon," Stefan snapped. "Although, I've been hearing whispers that Elena has feelings for a certain flannel-wearing friend of ours," the older man taunted. "Ooh, that's gotta be a huge blow to your ego. I know it would be to mine."

"I don't have to listen to this," Stefan raised his hands in exasperation. "Is it working Stefan?" Damon inquired. "Being around her and Dean, being in their world? Does it make you feel alive?"

"She's not Katherine and he's not the freak of nature you're painting him to be," Stefan argued defensively. "Well, let's hope not," Damon hummed. "We both know how that last story ended, and I'm also not particularly keen on being on the run for the rest of my life." Stefan glared daggers at his brother and wished more than anything that he would just go away. But since when did he ever get what he wanted.

And as much as Damon annoyed him, what annoyed him, even more, was how truthful he was being. Elena was in love with Dean and yes, in love was the right word. It was plain as day for anyone to see and honestly, he couldn't find it in him to be the least bit jealous. It was a little less obvious to tell if Dean was in love with her, considering how well he blocked off his emotions. However, if you knew what to look for like he did, then it would be easier to tell.

And Dean almost definitely did.

"Well, going back to what you said about Elena being in love with Dean, so what?" Stefan shot back. "If they're happy together, fine. I just came back to get to know Elena and I'm perfectly capable of doing that as her friend." This surprised Damon, as he was not expecting his brother to be so cool with the idea of a guy who was like a brother to him getting with Elena. Damon knew from experience that he wouldn't have been so lenient.

"Huh," he said. "Mature of you."

"Yeah, well, that's something you wouldn't know a whole lot about," Stefan retorted snidely.

Damon scoffed. "Whatever. Anyway, tell me something, when's the last time you had something stronger than a squirrel?"

"I know what you're doing, Damon," Stefan stated. "It's not gonna work."

Damon pushed Stefan back roughly as he tauntingly said, "Yeah? Come on. Don't you crave a little?" "Stop it!" Stefan pushed back. But Damon kept trying to get a rise out of him. And as soon as he brought up his cravings for Elena's blood, he knew he'd hit a nerve. Stefan roared with unearthly rage-- fangs extended and eyes bloodshot-- and flew right towards his brother, tackling him through the window.

When he landed, Stefan grunted in discomfort. One of the downsides to his "vegetarian diet," it hurt like a mother when he got into a fight with his brother.

"I was impressed," Damon admitted. "I give it six. Missing style, but I was pleasantly surprised." Stefan got to his feet, albeit with some trouble, and seethed at his brother. "Very good with the whole face-- [imitates Stefan] thing. It was good," Damon jeered mockingly. "You know, it's all fun and games, Damon, huh?" Stefan started. "But wherever you go, people die."

"That's a given."

"Not here. I won't allow it," Stefan declared. "And I'm not the only one who's willing to stop you this time either." Damon tilted his head slightly and smirked. "Is that an invitation from you and your pet Hunter?" "Damon, I'm serious," Stefan implored. "After all these years can't we give it a rest?"

"I promised you an eternity of misery, so I'm just keeping my word," Damon reasoned.

"Just stay away from Elena and Sam, that's all I ask."

Instead of agreeing to his terms, Damon looked down at Stefan's right hand and furrowed his brow. "Where's your ring?" He questioned. Stefan immediately looked down only to find that his ring was missing and he slowly started to panic. "Oh, yeah, sun's comin' up in a few hours," he inhaled sharply, "and, poof, ashes to ashes." Stefan looked to his brother with betrayal and fear in his eyes.

"Relax," Damon chuckled, pulling Stefan's daylight ring out of his pocket. "It's right here." Hesitantly at first, Stefan reached out to grab his ring out of Damon's hand and placed it back on his middle finger. And not a moment later, Damon's handsome face contorted into that of a monster's and he grabbed his brother and hurled him into the wooden gate fence violently. "You should know better than to think you're stronger than me," Damon spat. "You lost that fight when you stopped feeding on people; I wouldn't try it again. And if _you_ think for one second that _I'm_ afraid of Dean Fucking Winchester, then you don't know me as well as you think."

Just then, the two brothers heard the sound of the back door opening. "I think we woke Zach up," Damon hummed. "Sorry, nephew." And with that, Damon turned and headed back into the house, whistling as he went.

* * *

Back at the Falls, Elena cautiously approached her brother and asked him if he was all right. When he didn't answer, she told him that she called Jenna to come to get them. "Well, it looks like she won't have to," Jeremy said, taking a swig of his beer. She asked what he meant and then heard the familiar sound of the Impala in the lot in front of the pavilion. Elena huffed in slight confusion, though a part of her was delighted that Dean was back.

She broke away from Jeremy and started toward the old style muscle car, just as Dean got out of the driver's side. "I thought you were taking Sam home," she said. "Well, I did," he answered. "But then I remembered I was gonna call you and I realized that you and Jeremy were probably still stranded here," Elena smirked knowingly, as he continued to explain why he came back in his stereotypical macho bravado tone.

"Then, I, you know, checked the tank and noticed it was still 3/4 of the way full, so I figured what the hell, why not waste some more gas picking up a friend," he concluded. "Well then, I guess I should call Jenna that I caught a ride home after all," she said in feigned obliviousness. Dean gave a lopsided grin, "Alright, you get in, I'll go get Mr. Alcohol Poisoning and we can go."

Elena let out a groan of frustration at the mention of her wayward brother. "What's it going to take to get through to him?" she asked. "It's like nothing I do works." "Well, I never really had this much trouble from Sam, when our dad died, but I remember being in the same position as Jeremy is right now," Dean replied. "It was before I moved to Mystic Falls and met you guys. Sam and I were living with our Uncle Bobby in Sioux Falls, and I was a mess. I was drinking, smoking, drugs, sex, the works."

Dean exhaled deeply as he leaned against Baby's hood. "When two teenage siblings lose a parent or both, it does something to them," he explained. "They get caught up in a barrel of emotions and they only see two ways out of it: grieve silently in their way or grieve loudly by acting out. I chose the latter."

"How did your uncle and Sam get through to you?" Elena inquired.

"They didn't."

Wait. What?

Now she was confused.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"I mean, that I was the one who got through to me," he clarified. "I remember I was driving home late from a party one and out of nowhere, I just pulled over and threw up on the side of the road.

"No reason. No explanation and then the next thing I know, I go home and burn all the drugs I stashed and got rid of all the liquor and I got clean." Dean removed one of the bracelets from his wrist and showed it to Elena. At first glance, it just looked like a regular bracelet, but when she got closer she saw a small charm on it that had the number _1065_ on it. "Is that?" she began. "Yup. I'll be three years sober next month," he finished.

"Wow. I guess congratulations are in order," Elena chuckled. "And now I feel like shit because I forced you to come to a party where they were serving alcohol and smoking pot. Oh, my God!" Dean immediately started laughing at her, as the horrifying realization dawned on her. "Elena, it's fine, I'm fine. We're all good," he said cajolingly. He put the bracelet back on his wrist and covered it up with his sleeve. "The point of that story was to show you that you can try to get through to him all you want, but at the end of the day, the only person who can help Jeremy is him," Dean stated. "And when he does finally snap out of this haze, _that's_ when he's gonna need you."

* * *

Meanwhile at the Mystic Grill, Bonnie was trying to help Caroline sober up before she took her back to her house and Caroline was being a little more vocal with her insecurities. "Why didn't he go for me?" she groaned. "You know, how come the guys I want never want me?"

"I'm not touching that," Bonnie backed off.

"I'm inappropriate. I _always_ say the wrong thing. And... Elena always says the _right_ thing," Caroline moped. "She doesn't even try! And he just picks her. She's not even attracted to him and he still picks her." Bonnie sighed sympathetically and continued listening as Caroline went off on a tangent about how Elena was always everyone's first choice and how she got everything handed to her.

"It's not a competition, Caroline," Bonnie replied once her friend calmed down. Caroline looked up at Bonnie. "Yeah, it is," she deadpanned.

On the other side of town, Matt Donovan sat in a chair next to his sister's hospital bed patiently waiting for her to open her eyes. While he waited, he went over every possible scenario in which type of animal could have attacked her. A cougar would have left claw imprints on her skin. The bite mark width was too small to be a puma but too big to be a raccoon or small animal. The doctors didn't find any traces of animal poison or venom in Vicki's bloodstream.

So what could have attacked her in those woods?

Out of his peripheral vision, Matt saw his sister starting to stir and slowly regain consciousness. "Matt," she gulped hoarsely. "Hey, don't try to talk," he whispered. "You're fine." Still, she kept trying to warn him and was only able to say one word before fading out of consciousness again.

"Vampire."

* * *

They finally pulled up in Elena's driveway and Dean put the car in park and turned off the ignition. "And we are here at last," Dean announced. "Thanks for the ride, Dean," Jeremy said, getting out of the car. "Yeah, no problem, kid," Dean replied.

"Jeremy, keep the door unlocked, I'll be in soon," Elena called after her brother. "I just need to talk to Dean for a minute." Once Jeremy was out of earshot, Elena turned to Dean who seemed slightly confused by her decision to stay. "There's something I've been meaning to tell you for a while now, but I haven't had the chance to tell you because something kept coming up," she began.

"Okay, what is it?" he asked.

This was it.

And it wasn't about to be interrupted... At least she hoped.

Not wanting to take any chances, she steadied herself and took a deep breath before saying, "I like you." A deep silence permeated the car. Dean swallowed thickly, his mind racing with all possible scenarios as to what she meant. He didn't want to insinuate the wrong thing and then make things awkward between them.

"Uh... What?" he chuckled nervously.

"Ever since the summer break, I've felt different about you, and..." she trailed off, "You know what, screw it!"

Before he could figure out what that meant, her lips connected with his as she kissed him sweetly. Dean was shocked at first but soon his lips softened against hers. She closed the gap between them until her body was almost on top of his and he snaked an arm around her waist, while his other hand carded through her thick brown hair.

Elena had both arms wrapped around his neck, as they made out. But before things could go any further, Dean broke away from her and they were both lightly gasping for air. "We should-- I should-- We... It's getting late, and we should probably get some rest for tomorrow," Dean said after a while.

"Yeah, right, um, I should probably get inside," Elena gestured awkwardly. "Yeah," Dean murmured. She opened up the car door and started to get out when Dean reached out for her and pulled her back in for another kiss. "I like you, too," he smiled after they separated. "See you tomorrow."

"See you then," she beamed. Then she hurried out of the car and walked inside the house. Once he was sure she got in safely, Dean smiled to himself and drove off.

* * *

> _Hey, Dad, it's me again. Today has been pretty hectic with all of the vampire business happening here in Mystic Falls. I had to deal with two victims, courtesy of Dick-bag Salvatore. But other than that, I had a really good day._
> 
> _I know how we've said in the past that Hunters can't fall in love or have a family, but Elena truthfully has me thinking otherwise. Now, I ain't saying I'm head over heels in love with her, but I do think she could be the start of something new for me._
> 
> _Something good._

* * *

> _Dear Diary,_
> 
> _Life couldn't be more horrible. Damon is back home and he's eager to stir up trouble. I'm terrified that I won't be able to protect Elena from Damon's wrath. He knows the best way to get to me is through Elena, so that's exactly what he'll do._
> 
> _And him going after her makes me uneasy, not just for her, but for him, too. If there is one person on this Earth who can put the fear of God into Damon, it's Dean. Because unlike me, Dean won't keep giving him second chances. He's already on thin ice with the Hunter as is. If Damon keeps baiting him, Mystic Falls could turn into a supernatural warzone with endless amounts of blood spilled._

* * *

> _Dear, Diary_
> 
> _I couldn't have been more wrong. I thought I could smile my way through it, and everything would be okay. Pretend to be okay._
> 
> _But I'm not._
> 
> _I'm not okay and I'm far from perfect. However, the universe seems to be letting up on the whole eternal punishment thing. Because it doesn't matter that I'm not perfect, Dean still cares about me anyway._ _And it's that thought that gets me through the day even when it's hard._
> 
> _It's just like what he told me after the accident. "Always keep fighting. Especially, when you feel like you can't go on. That's when you need to fight the hardest."_

* * *

> _And that's what I'll have to do. I will fight to protect Mystic Falls and the people in it, even if I have to sever all ties from my brother in the process. Because it's my fault for what happened to Damon all those years ago. But I am done letting his inability to let go of the past interfere with_ _my future._
> 
> _I finally have the chance to create a life without the past._

* * *

> _Without the pain._

* * *

> _Without loss._
> 
> _I have a chance to do something different, but I can't go through with it if I keep trying to hunt down what killed Mom. And so that's my decision, Dad. I know it's not what you wanted for me; for us. But I'm sorry, I can't put the people I care about through that kind of worry anymore._
> 
> _This is probably the last time you hear from me. Because to let go of the past... I need to let go of you._
> 
> _I need to be someone who can feel something._

* * *

> _Someone alive._

* * *

> _But it's not that easy. The bad things stay with you._

* * *

> _They follow you._

* * *

> _They hang over your shoulder, as a reminder of what you can never have._

* * *

> _You can't escape them, as much as you want to._

* * *

> _All you can do is be ready for the good. So when it comes, you invite it in, because you need it._
> 
> _I need it._

* * *

> _I need it._

* * *

> _I need it. I need her, Dad._
> 
> _Even though a string of chaotic events has begun to unfold, I'd say today had a pretty good ending._
> 
> _This is good-bye, for now, Dad._
> 
> _But I promise you, I won't stop looking after our family._
> 
> _Signed,_
> 
> _Dean Winchester_

  
End...

> **Author's Note:**

> This fic was inspired by Annehiggins SPN/TVD Crossover. Please, please, check out her story it's amazing. Also, some of the elements in her story have been adopted into mine. I have altered some things and changed a handful of details, but full credit for the Campbell Curse idea goes to her.


End file.
